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SATAN CHAINED 



A POEM, 



PROFESSOR N. DUNN, A. M., 

(Of Bowdoin College,* Class 1825, J 

FOKMEBLY INSTRUCTOR IN CHEMSTRr AND NATURAL PHILOSOPHY, IN WILBRA- 
HAM ACADEMY, MASS., AFTERWARDS, PRDJCIPAL OF HEMPSTEAD SEMDsARY, 
L. I. ; AND LATTERLY, LECTURER IN RUTGERS FEMALE COLLEGE, IN THE 
CITY OF NEW YORK. 



And I saw an angel ci)me down from neaven, having 
chain iu bis hand " — BIBLE. 



SECOND EDITION. 



a great 



3JJQ,rV 



JVJBJ ir TOliA, 

PUBLISHED BY THE AUTHOR. 

FOR BALE AT e05 BROADWAY. 



^>' 



,1' 



Z .t:r;z a^rcording to Act of Congre-st. \r, t?u year 1573, 
BT XA THAX IEL DUyX. 

In tlu Ofici of the Itibrarian of Congre^i. at Washington, D. C. 



TO MY DAUGHTEE, 



CHARLOTTE ELIZABETH, 



VraO HAS BEEN MY CONSTANT COMPANION THESE TEAES PAST. 



AND HAS EVER BEEN IN SYMPATHY WITH ME 
IN MY LABOBS : 



AND HAS AFFOEDED ME NO SMALL ASSISTANCE IN PEEPABING IT FOR 
THE PEESS, — THIS POEM, 



SATAN CHAINED, 



IS MOST AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED. 



NATHANIEL DUl^iN. 



J 



FAVORABLE Y/ORDS, 



A clergyman from Sing Sing writes : 

' I am reading your ' Satan Chained ' witli great satisfaction — Grand poem ! " 

A lady of Kockland county, not unknown to the press, writes : 

'■ Full, from beginniag to end, of original ideas ; many of them startling. The descrip- 
tion of Hf-aven, its inhabitants, and their employments, is beautiful. The Eebellion .... 
and, finally, the chainiug of Satan, is terribly sublime. It is, in short, a pen-picture, "vrhich, 
once read, enstamps itself indelibly on the memory. ' 

A lady from Brooklyn writes of it : 

" Magntflcent poem ! It charms, delights and edifies me. 

A merchant of New York states in a note : 

" I hare read " Satan Chained" through twice, and with increased interest, pleasure and 
profit. The power and dii^nicy of style, the elevating spirit, and the Tividly drawn 
scenes and characters cannot fail of arresting the attention even of the careless reader; 
but to one who ' reads between the lines, and studies the work, it is a rich mine." 

From a professor of one of our colleges : 

"The sentiments of the poem are most admirable in every respect. It has never 
failed to aftbrd me much interest and pleasure," 

A gentleman of New Jersey, connected with the press, charac- 
terizes it as 

"An admirably executed epic. . . . Am enjoying the reading very much." 

A clergyman says in a note : 

"I have read it with unminaled interest .... It was with difficulty I could lay it 
aside till I had reached the end of the book." 

An ex-merchant of this city, himself somewhat known for his 
poetical compositions, writes : 

' In my opinion it is a masterly production .... Passages in it are unsurpassed in 
the English language. ' 

Another gentleman, who read the work in manuscript, said of 
it: 

" Fully up to MUton's 'Paradise Lost;' and more readable." . 

The Methodid Quarterly (April 1876) says : 

"We cannot say the writer equals Milton. But we can conscientiously say, we think 
lie is scarce inferior to Pollok." 

A clergyman, who had it in manuscript, said of it : 

" It is a splendid thing.' ' 

A lawyer of IVIinnesota used about the same words, saying : 

"It is splendid." 

A gentleman writes from Cincinnati that it is considered there, 

"A masterpiece of work. ' 

Those who read the poem will, of course, judge for themselves 
how far these favorable criticisms are just. 



f 



REF ACE 



The following Poem, " Satan Chained," was com- 
menced in the year 1854, and was completed, as a whole, 
in the year 1864. Daring the most of those ten years, 
the author was engaged in giving public lectures on the 
subject of Chemistry, in several of the States. His 
mind was necessarily much occupied with the require- 
ments of his profession. He found, however, leisure 
hours, though seldom whole days, to devote to the com- 
position of it . Still, it is simply an adherence to truth 
to say, that the whole of it was written under a constant 
pressure of anxieties and cares. What it would have 
been, had the mind been disencumbered of other mat- 
ters, whether better or not, none can tell. 

It has been lying by ever since, receiving, in the mean 
time, numerous amendments and additions — till it is 
found in its present shape. 

It is now offered to the public, with a desire, of 
course, that it may find readers : but with no expecta- 
tion, however, that it will fully meet the taste of any 
single one of them. But if the major part of it should 



vi Preface. 

satisfy the taste of a majority of readers, the author 
will have attained his most sanguine expectations. 

A point has been made to render the text as perspi- 
craous as possible ; even, occasionally, at the expense of 
brevity, with the hope that the masses, the plainest of 
them, will find no diffiaulty in comprehending the au- 
thor's meaning, and that they will the more readily 
derive an agreeable entertainment from the perusal of 
its pages. 

And should this production prove acceptable to those 
of higher culture, and more refined taste, a double gra- 
tification will be realized by 

The Authoe. 
New Yoke, December, 1875. 

iiuthor's Nots to the Second Edition. 



The author need not say he feels much gratified 
at the reception this poem has thus far received ; a 
goodly number, who have perused its pages, having 
expressed to him, by letter, or otherwise, a high 
appreciation of the work. 

A number of errors, chietiy typographical, found 
in the first edition, have been corrected in this. 

One line has been expunged and another put in its 
place ; and the rithm set right in several instances ; 
otherwise this edition is an exact re-print of the first. 
August, 1876. 



p 



ONTENTS. 



SATAN CHAIITED. -TWELVE BOOES, 



PARE 

Book I. — Council in Hell — (Called by Satan, and Scattered 

by a Tempest) 11 

** IL— Eebellion of Eorah 8."j 

•' in. — Satan in Hell after his Defeat at the Rebellion of 

Korah — His Reception — His Remorse 121 

" rV. — Settlement of the Church in Canaan— Birth of 

the Messiah 131 

" v.— The Church from the Birth of Christ to the Day 

of Pentecost 145 

VI.— Rebellion in Hell— Battles of the Gods— A Pro- 
found Peace 163 

" VII.— Heaven 187 

*' VIII.— Apostolic Days— Man-of-Sin— Midnight 207 

IX.— The Church from "Midnight "to the Downfall 

of Man-of-Sin 223 



viii Contents. 

Book X. — Slavery— Its Rise, and Downfall 229 

«* XL— A.D. 11,863.— The Church— Eeports, in Hell, of 
Man-of-Sin, of Mammon, and of Juggernaut — 
Apostacy, and Eeclamation, of the World, 
A.D. 13,863 251 

" XII.— A. D. 23.863.— Expedition of Michael to Hell- 
Lost Spirits — Fierce Fighting — Satan Cap- 
tured, and Chained 271 



SATAN CHAINEDr 



BOOK I 



Thine aid, Eternal Spirit, give. Instruct, 
Sustain, while I attempt in venturous Terse 
Things past, things present, and things yet to come. 
The TRiuiMPH OF aiiE Chu::icb: of god below, 
And Satax Chained. 

Among the alps of Hell, 
Whose fiery peaks shoot up, and pierce and scorch 
The clouds, there is a table-land. This plain, 
Of wide expanse, is high uphft above 
The level of surrounding lands. And here. 
On jutting angle, worn with ceaseless care. 
Sat Satan, Hell's great king. Behind him stretched 
Immense this wide plateau ; and on his left 
Far down the craggy cliffs, beneath him lay 
The Stygian lake, whose darkling face was spread 
Beyond the reach of keenest vision ; and 
Whose billows, hoarse and dreadful as from storms 
Remote, rolled sullen on the shattered beach. 
And bellowed ominous through rocks and caves. 

And on his right, below this lofty plain, 
Was stretched a desert drear, if desert can 



12 Satan Chained, 

Be traced in hell, where all is desert. Wide, 
And wasteful was that barren tract ; and filled 
With monsters dread, and vipers fierce, and asp*? 
And adders dire, of deadliest fang. 

In front 
Sprang up beyond all ken of sight, a vast, 
A horrid mountain range, of adamant. 
The rocks, the broken ribs of Hell. 

He saw 
The prospect drear, but heeded not, for thoughTg 
Of weightiest moment rolled within him. He 
For once forgot his sad, his lost estate. 
While night falls on him, such as Hell alone 
Can boast ; of pitchy darkness, only broke 
By lurid phosphorescent flashes from 
The restless lake, or -transient threatening gleaml 
Of fire eruptive : rendering still more black 
Night's dreadful wing, which overspread afar 
That world accursed. 

Alone he sat, or paced 
That area ; for none desired the risk 
Of close proximity, unbid, to Hell's 
Dread chief, the Hyder Ah of the damned. 

He took no rest, not e'en such rest as Hell 
Affords ; but spent the night in making out 
A kind of programme for the coming day, 
For that day was to be a day of note ; 
A memorable epoch in the books 
Of HeU. 

A convocation had been called ; 
The mandate had gone forth to utmost bounds 
Of his domain, for all to meet on day 
Appointed— all- — the chiefs, the Satraps — all, 



Satan Chained. 13 

But not plebeians. What are they ? ah ! HelPs 

A despotism — a deadly tyranny, 

Beneath whose grinding %yheels the common caste 

Of damned spirits ever groan and bleed. 

No hope to them or respite ever comes 

From ii'on rule, and crushing weight of power ; 

Except when mad rebellion frees the galled 

And rising masses, for some httle space ; 

Though sure by force or fraud to be reduced. 

And pay in blood and tears the rash attempt. 

They'd all been summoned, not by herald as 
In days of yore, but telegraph ; that wrote 
In one short instant, through those regions vast, 
In view of every chief his wt:ll supeeme. 

All Hell was moved at this imperious call. 
None dared refuse, but instant hastened to 
Prepare for flight — on speediest wing they rode. 
And day and night, and night and day, impelled 
By beat xoerpetual of pinions spread. 
And strength of ocean engines, urge their course. 
Through adverse winds and storms they force their w^ay, 
Nor stop for rest, though wide and ruinous 
The space they pass ; for, dread of anger for 
One moment late drinks up all other thoughts. 

At length the mind of Satan, as he planned. 
In moody silence, wrapped in deepest gloom. 
The next day's business, fierce and desperate grew. 
He thought of Heaven— its bliss, once his, now lost ; 
The ambrosial fields of Paradise, and fruits. 
For which earth has no name, no sample ; rich 
In juices, fit for gods. These ever hung 
Upon the glorious trees that skirted deep 



14: Satan Chained. 

The shores of that great stream, the riv'r of hfe ; 
"Which flowed incessant from the throne of Grod, 
And watered all the vales of Heaven, and clothed 
With richest verdure ; and distilled upon 
The hills and mountain-tops, and filled with fruits 
And flowers. 

He thought of his ronown in Heaven, 
WThen, walking as a god among the hosts, 
They did him reverence as arch-angel of 
The highest rank, and standing near the throne ; 
And then, aspiring, how his all he staked 
Upon a single throw^ — and lost — a,nd sank 
To HeU. 

That instant burst a meteor, like 
The sun, and showed in horrid landscape all 
The wasteful desolation of his home ; 
Its rocks and naked soil and desert tracts. 
So far unlike the hills and vales of Heaven. 
His soul burned in him with the fiercest rage, 
And poured forth blasphemies that shock e'en Hell. 

The night, the sleepless night thus passes on. 
And now the darkness tangible, that like 
A funeral pall o'erhung that scene of death 
Gives way. A fiery gleam appears, and streaks 
The dread horizon, giving promise of 
Approaching- day ; such day as Hell can claim. 
This checked his fiery thoughts and impious tongue, 
And called him back, and turned him with intense 
Anxiety to what the day might bring, 
Of hope or of despah. 

The lurid light 
Heaves slowly up the eastern sky, and now, 



Satan Chained, 15 

'With clouds of blackest wing' and fearful form, 
Brings in the day — if day can be in Hell, 
Where Darkness reigns enthroned, and ever from 
Her shroud and sable locks shakes off the forms 
Of ghastliest phantoms ; idly thence which flit 
In silence and on dusky fearful ^Ying 
Through every cave and path ; and haunt with fear, 
And freeze the spirits of the damned. 

The fiend and dreaded chief, now pacing to 
An:l fro the wide-spread space, with visage flushed 
And quicker tread, as nearer draws the hour 
Assigned, betrays the intenser feelings of 
His harrowed soul. 

His telescopic e^^es 
Sweep ever and anon the circuit of 
The iieavens, as if for comets new, or worlds 
Unseen before. 

And now^ on farthest sky, 
That bounds the visual circle, seen at length, 
"Were what appeared but specks or clouds, like that 
AYliich caught the servant's eye on Carmel, when 
The heavens refused their wonted genial showers 
To thirsty Israel, grown idolatrous 
From pagan Jezebel in Ahab's reign. 
The servant searched and strained his aching eyes. 
A cloud no bigger than a human hand appeared, 
A speck above the Western sea, but which 
Ere long in one dark tempest wide o'erhung 
The 'thereal arch, and gave abundant rain. 

So here, what seemed but specks to Satan's eye, 
Xow gaining space, and wide and wider grown. 
While s\nftlv moving on in hue direct. 
And shortening ^till :he :listance vast with more 



16 Satan Chained, 

Than comet speed in perihelion, 

At length, in near approach, exj^ancling and 

Uniting, filled the upper regions with 

One black continuous cloud. It darkened HelL 

It ^Yas a cloud of Spirits, Captains, Chiefs, 

Arrived from all the principalities 

Of that vast empire ; come from every point 

Of compass, centering there, the common goal, 

As nebulous matter at the birth of worlds. 

They whirl aloft, with wings outspread ; 
A firmament of devils. Thence beneath 
They spy the standard of their dreaded King, 
And wait the signal to descend, which given. 
They quit the fields of upper space, and plunge 
With eagle swoop and fierce gyrations down, • 
And light upon the plain on which it stood. 

'Twas more than Hell could bear. The suffering ground 
Kecoiled beneath their feet, the desert sighed ; 
And blasted seemed anew that blasted world. 

Their dusky wings, then folding up, they stand 
In human form, a multitude, which none 
Could number, none could give their names, save minds 
Of highest gifts in Heaven or Hell. Yet these 
Were chiefs alone, the shepherds of the sheep ; 
How numerous ! The sheep then, w^iat of them ? 
How multitudinous ! How populous 
Is Hell 1 Ah, spirits have gone down to death 
Like autumn leaves. How broad the way, how wide 
The gate ! O, Sin, what ruin hast thou wrought ! 
And how cast down the sons of God ! once heirs 
Of bliss, now sunk and lost, forever lost ! 

They saw not Satan. He preferred to be 



Satan Chained. 17 

Keserved, and take the most auspicious time 

To manifest his august presence to 

Tlie waiting throng. He had retired unseen, 

Before the host descended, to his tent ; 

"Which stood in front of his encampment, where 

His sentinels keep watch and guard with care 

His royal person when he seeks for rest 

Or draws the plans of battles or of long 

Campaigns ; or when he holds his council on 

Affairs of state, in time of actual war. 

His marshals at command receive the host 
Arrived, and in procession vast, and with 
The sound of trumpets loud, and clarions clear, 
Conduct them to the wide arena of 
Debate. 

'Twas on the Eastern limb of this 
Vast plain. The seats had there been spread and all 
Been numbered with the nicest care, and named 
For each one coming ; so that no mishap 
Of placing out of rank should raise the blood 
Of this Assembly. For in Hell respect 
Of rank and title is insisted on 
With bloody rigor ; and most deadly strife 
In single combat would ensue for least 
Infraction of the laws of etiquette, 
Or code of honor. Why not even so ? 
For all need something that shall give them weight : 
And why not hold to rank and titles with 
A dying grasp, and outward show of worth 
And character, when all within is vile 
And worthless ? Let the good be thrust fi'om right, 
Insulted, suffer loss of name, and be 

Outcast as filth. Yet they can bear it all ; 

2 



18 Sata7i Chained, 

For jet the inner man remainy iintonclied. 
But wliere there is no inner man (whicli long 
Since like a core has rotted out), 'tis well 
"With nicest circimispection to preserve 
The outward man, the husk, the empty shelL 
In Heayen there are no duels. These are left 
To men and deyils, who have pressing need. 
The code of honor is the code of Hell. 

With nicest order all their places found ; 
And sat, a vast Assembly, such as earth ne'er saWg 
A prairie space from sun to sun ; but not 
In open air ; for Mulciber, forewarned 
An awning T^ide had raised to shield them from 
The noisome damps and altern scorching heats 
That ever yex that curse-deToted clime. 

This awning was a wonder ; spreading wide 
As ocean ; high in arch above ; and graced 
With lamps and gorgeous drapery ; and what 
Amazed the eye beholding, had no cords 
Nor stakes nor pillars. Firmly fixed, it hung 
Without support, stupenduous sight ! the work 
Of Mulciber ; sustained by science shrewd 
And devihsh magic joined. Great Architect, 
O, Mulciber ! What skill and taste are thine ! 
Thy fame is known in Heaven as weU as HsU. 
What palaces and towers and labyrinths 
Are still in Heaven, memorials of thee ! 
What groves and gardens and delicious walks ! 
WTiat fountains, terraces and winding paths ; 
And set with never-fading trees of life, 
And arched vdth flowers, th' undying Amaranth ! 
O, fallen god ! thy name is left behind ; 



Satan Chained, 19 

Thy works like pyramids attest thy hand, 
And show what intellect went down to Hell. 
Parts great secure not Heaven. 'Tis goodness ; this 
Alone insures a lot among the blest. 

In front a gorgeous stately throne was raised, 
A wondrous piece of art, and canopied 
With richest tapestry, inwrought with gold 
And precious stones ; and godher far than kings 
Of Eastern chmes e'er saw. 

While all admire, 
Their King arrives, announced with trumpet sound 
And shout that deafened Hell. The Senate, though 
Composed of gods, arose at his approach, 
And deference paid as due to higher rank. 

He mounts the royal seat j^repared, and sat 
In state sublime ; a god among the gods ; 
In stature vast, above the rest though great ; 
As Saul the anointed Benjamite o'er-topped 
The Hebrew host. His form was matchless, and 
His brow — though deeply scarred with bolts of war — ■ 
Of massy mould, and full in breadth and hight, 
And beetling o'er his eyes like rocky cliffs, 
Or wide and darkhng folds of thunder cloud, 
Betokened intellect of mightiest cast. 
And showed him master-spirit of that w^orld ; 
"\"\Tiile from his gorgeous robes and starry crown 
Of gems and burnished gold, the rainbow flashed 
In every wondrous hue, and filled with awe 
The vast admiring throng. 

They saw their chief, 
And each, enrapt, forgetting for the time 
His private wrongs, and inward hate, felt joroud 



20 Satan Chained, 

Of sucli a leader. He was proud in turn. 

Imposing yision ! Royalty enthroned ; 

And at his feet the mighty of the reahn. 

In countless numbers waiting his behests, 

At least in semblance of submission due 1 

But all was hollow ; selfishness supreme. 

And moral rottenness filled every breast. 

None dared his fellow trust, though bound by oaths 

That frightened Hell ; for each stood ready at 

Some proff3red good to leap the bounds of right. 

And laugh to scorn his oaths and plighted faiiu, 

And turn assassin to S:'cure the end. 

Abhorred society, unmixed with good, 

Where lies and wickedness unbounded reign ! 

Its salt has earth, and hence not whoUy lost. 
But where's the salt of Hell ? there every crime, 
Uncheked by weeds of good, grows rank and yields 
A thousand fold. Lot sad of spirit lost ! 
Unmixed result of sin, the wrath to come ! 

All hated and all feared ; but Satan most ; 
For though he on his gala days, with show 
And royal fetes relaxed his iron reign. 
And seemed a lovely prince, a father mild. 
And bowed with gracious smile the gazing throng ; 
Yet all but know too well what lay beneath 
That semblance of attention kind • and had 
Experience of his daily acts unseen ; 
And treasured fierce remembrance of them all ; 
But, most, the keen disgrace and scorpion whip 
With Yv'hich at first he broke them in and bent 
Them to his will. IIis Will ! all Hell recoils \ 

His word was law. And right or wrong must be 
Observed. (That doctrine came from Hell, which laughs 



Satan Chained. 21 

To scorn the Higher law, the law of God.) 
The powers that be must ever be obeyed. 
Such is the doctrine of the Pit ; which thence 
Came smoking up to earth ; the doctrine called 
The lower law. They feel it there, and crawl 
And hck the dust, and push through every shame ; 
And fawning kiss the tyrant's feet, and shout 
The lower law. 

" All hated and all feared ;" 
And each stood on his guard. And Satan fe.r. .%! ; 
And ever 'gainst surprise kept ceaseless watch. 
And hence called not this concourse to be held 
In his metropolis, his Royal seat, 
The far, lar famous Pandemonium. 
He knew his men, though great, yet wicked ; knew 
Their temper, fiery lusts ; and, cautious chief. 
Perceived it madness to expose the weal 
Of his great capital to such a host 
Of ruffian spirits ; and, besides, combined 
In mutinous assault they might surprise, 
And wTest from him his towers, his strongest holds. 
The Acropolis of Hell. And hence again, 
He came not up alone ; but brought along 
His legions armed ; and them encamped aloof 
For what emergency might rise, to give 
More weight in council, or to guard from plots 
Of treason, or from bui'sts of passion raised 
To fury in debate. 

These legions were 

His own — were ready at his bid to do 

AVhate'er he wiUed. The most atrocious deeds 

"Were theirs. Where'er they moved all Hell turned pale ; 



22 Satan Chained. 

They sacked, they pillaged, fed their fiery lusts, 
Aiid Itfc a lava path of death behind ; 
The scourge of Hell, the Cossacks of the damned, — 
Nay, worse, the " border rulnans '' of that world ! 

Their midnight orgies who can tell ? The weak 
Fell prostrate, and with tears of blood besought. 
Besought in vain ; and mid the darkest glooms 
What shriekc were heard, that made e'en devils weep! 

They came from every province, mustered by 
Conscription : (The Conscription came from Hell.) 
At first they shrunk from such a service, and 
Essayed to 'scape the call. They idd themselves 
In caves and rocks ; or sought the bottom of 
The fieiy lake ; or fled to Arctic wilds 
And froze, and wandered o'er the ice, or, pressed 
To frenzy, lopped a hand or limb ; but ali 
In vain ! The marshals o+ the tyrant's will 
Pursued them with demoniac heart, and search ci 
Them out from all theii lone ■.etreats, iii;d at 
The point o± barbed steel removed them to 
The place of rendevous ; but with a full, 
A solemn promise from their chief, that each 
Should be returned at stated time, and net 
Again be called to serve in war. Eeturnecl ! 
Ah, when? "A solemn promise!" nay^ ar oath I 
Beheve it not. It is a spider's web 
To wicked power, where law can never come 
T' avenge a l^reaeh ; a toy t' amuse the throng 
While cheated of theii rights, They ne'er returned | 
Nor wished to now ; for they had been sc drilled, 
And fed with blood, and made victorious in 
A thousand fields ; had fouiid such scope for all 
Their passions ; bred so long to martial show, 



Satan Chained. 23 

And camps, and all the blood and smoke and dust 
And death of war, that all then- better tastes 
"Were lost ; and they transformed to devils of 
^The bloodiest cast. They loved the camp, and their 
Great leader, who had so infused his own 
Inherent virtues through their souls, that, at 
His call, they'd storm the cannon's mouth ; or brave 
A wilderness of swords and spears ; or fling 
Their naked bodies as a shield around 
Their Chief ; or cast them down a bridge for wheels, 
Or iron hoofs of his impetuous steed. 
Then crawHng breathless, bloodless from the fight, 
Would give, with first sufficient breath, the shout, 
Thii shout, '' Long live our niightj, glorious chief!" 

They were his idols, he, in turn, their god ; 
His idols, while they could be used to reach 
His ends ; and were provided for with best 
Of care ; were Mattered and caressed ; but when 
Diseased or maimed, and useless grown, were left 
To ruthless foes, in hospitals, or on 
The wastes of burning deserts, while he pushed 
His conquering march to other fields, where still 
New victories could be won, new glory gained ; 
But not for them, for him alone. And 'tis 
The same on earth. Ten thousand sow, 
And bear the toil and pain, but one proud chief 
The harvest reaps. In point of glory earth 
Is much like Hell. 

The first excitement o'er 
At his apiDroach and entrance to his seat 
Of royal state, with dignity composed 
And kingly grace, a moment Satan sat, 



24 Satan Chained, 

And viewed with coolness but ^itli eagle eye 
The Tast assembly ; slowly rising then, 
Another full and searching look bestowed. 
And with commanding mein prepared to speak. 

A deathhke silence hushed each whispeidng word 
And rusthng garment, e'en the breath and pulse ; 
For all with eager ear sat fixed to catch 
The earliest word that should reveal to them 
The mystery of this call, to meet in haste 
And in such numbers vast. 

" My Lords,'' said he, 
" The pillars of oui* realm, the flower, the ehte 
" Of Hell, and once the ehte of Heaven, who drained 
" That world of all her better blood when we 
" Retired — a sweet revenge for ah th' affi-'ont.-; 
'•' Bestowed on us before we left. It gives 
" Me pleasure, yes, the gTcatest pleasui-e her-> 
" To find such proofs of loyalty throughout 
" Our vast domain. Receive our thanks for this 
" Response. The welfare of om* realm has called 
" Us here ; for Hell is yours as well as mine ; 
" And all encroachments on our vested rights, 
" Or those inherent, should be met with front 
" Unbroken, and with firm resolve, against 
" Whatever foe may rise, with ceaseless war, 
" And fiercest battle to contend, till he 
" Shall quit the field and leave us undisturbed. 
" Or, faihug this, by arts of shrewdest kind 
" To circumvent and foil his every scheme, 
" Till, wearied, he shall yield as if by force 
" Repelled ; or, if not yielding, shall the strife 
" Prolong through ages, without one success j; 



Satan Chained, 25 

" While we grow strong despite this border war. 

" But we had hoped t' advance, and gain new ground 
'• And hold, and introduce at will our own 
" Pecuh'ar institutions. For in Hell, 
" As well you know, our institutions are 
" Pecuhar all." (She is the mother of 
This precious brood.) " And some of these at least 
"We hoped, and still do hope t' propagate 
" To provinces to be annexed ; for we 
" Had thought again that destiny was on 
" Our side, and that w^e should in time annex 
" All other realms, and thus our race, 
" Our heaveno-hellish blood,enlarged,should reign supreme. 
" But in our httle province Earth, which we 
" Have held these years with undisputed swa^-, 
" Of late some tumult has arisen, which ye 
" Have heard by vague report, but now, with stamp 
" Official, called the cause of ' Truth on Earth 
" And Eighteousness ;' a scheme of our great Foe 
" In Heaven." — And here the vast assembly burst 
At once at sound of that great hated name expressed, 
"With fierce and deadly rage. — They hissed, they groaned, 
They tore the suffering ground, and uttered words 
Of cursing known alone in Hell. — " And," he 
Continued, " this appears a scheme, a deep 
" And studied plot, which bodes no future good 
'• To me or you. All opposition to 
'• Our rightful sway before, has been 
*•' In isolated breaks, resulting thence 
" In trivial harm, and easily subdued. 
" So we in truth have reigned from Adam till 
" The present hour. 

Ye know how Adam fell. 



26 Satan Chained. 

" An easy prey, and how the sons of God 

" By daughters fair of men were overcome ; 

" And how we gathered in a harvest rich 

" And unexpected at the flood. Ye know 

" Moreover, how on Shinar's plains, men soon 

" Forgot the words of Noah, and began 

" To build a tower to lift its head to heaven ; 

" And how from thence we were adored as gods, 

" And walked abroad in open day confessed, 

" Bewhile the altars of our rival foe 

" Were driven to rocks and caves and desert wastes, 

" And his lone worshipers, the scoff "of ail, 

" Were ever hunted down, and rooted out 

" From earth." 

And here a shout arose that tore 
The concave of the infernal world, and shook 
The solid ground ; a shout, compared with which, 
The greatest shouts of earth, were but the hum 
Of bees, or fehne purrings at the hearth 
Of winter's eve. It crashed from hill to hill, 
From mount to mount, and bellowed direful through 
Those regions vast ; and spread alarm among 
The distant damned, and died away at last 
Like warring seas. — Such rehsh is in Hell 
For goodness overcome. 

" But here's a plot, 
" I fear," continued Satan, " tame at first 
" 'Tis true, and simple, but which may evolve 
" By skill and power almighty, such a play 
" As earth has never known before, nor Hell. 
" The first act seems beginning ; all the rest 
" Is myst'ry, wrapped in darkness ; far beyond 
" The ken prophetic of the greatest sage 



Satan Chained. 27 

" Of Heaven or earth or Hell ; but whicli the lapse 

" Of years in slow succession may unfold, 

" In separate acts, but yet connected in 

" One grand design, till drama-like, the whole 

" Shall be displayed, and end in ruin full 

" And final to us all. 

" But how, or what, 
" Or when, Ave know not. This we know, and shall 
" Forget not soon, that when the curse went forth 
'' On man, a promise found its way therewith, 
" ' The woman's seed shall bruise the serpent's head.' 
" Quite simjole words, but of tremendous power ! 
" They rang through Hell, and shook her deep and dark 
" Foundations, giving awful signs of some 
"Approaching ill. 

" And should this be a plot 
" To this effect, it must by counter plot 
" Be met ; for war we will not now advise. 
" But first, is this a plot, distinct from breaks 
" Of isolated kind, which have no force 
" Beyond themselves ? The facts will cast some light. 

" Then first, m Ur of Chaldees Terah dwelt ; 
" And with his household left his native land 
" And dwelt in Haran, nothing strange ; but then 
" His son, next called of God, removed again 
" And dwelt in Canaan, far from all his kin, 
" And left hij gods behind ; and altars built 
" To worship our great foe. Yet no alarm, 
" But rather pity, and the laugh of Hell ; 
" That he, who held or boasted that he held 
" Omnipotent control of Heaven and earth, 
" Should have but ove to bear his name, and build 
" Him altars, while we, ' conquered/ had the rest 



28 Sat ail Chained. 

'• Of Adam's race. He did seduce this one, 
" The gain to him was rjitiful and weak, 
" Unworthy of that boastful name ' Supreme.' 
" The loss to us was but a drop from out 
" Of ocean, neither missed nor cared for, but 
" Eesigned VYith ease, and richly paid in mirth. 

" A famine came and southward drove the pet 
" To Egypt, where his blood had stained the soil, 
" And Sarah been a princess of the land, 
" His comely wife, and worshiped us again, 
" Had not another fact appeared, and God 
" Kebuked the king, ' Touch not the anointed one. 
" Nor do my prophet harm.' 

" This startled us. 
" For Abel and a thousand others fell 
" At once, but he's preserved unhai-med : besides, 
" Some words were dropped ; ' A blessing shalt thou be 
" A nation great, and known through all the earth ; 
" And dispossess the Canaanite ; and dwell 
" In that rich land.' For what ? For aught we know 
" To work our fall, and send us back to HeU. 
" A thousand altars then may rise for one ; 
" And worshipers in numbers as the sand ; 
" And undermine, and push us from the earth. 

" Again : ' Go take thy son and offer him 
" A sacrifice to me.' We heard with joy, 
" And fullest throb of hope ; believing he 
" Would sure refuse, and be destroyed. 
" But no ! with steadfast eye and steady step 
" But aching heart, he took the boy, the wood, 
" The knife, and journeyed to the fatal spot ; 
" Prepared the wood, and bound the child, and raised 
" The knife, and would have finished the command. 



Satan Chained. 29 

" Had not his hand been held, and he released 
" By God himself from this tremendous call. 

" Our hopes were dashed, and we thrown back in deep 
" Perplexity at this mysterious deed. 
" It seemed a fi*eak of ai-bitrary will ; 
" But yet a meaning may be couchant there , 
" A meaning that some future day may show. 

" Moreover, angels oft were seen from Heaven 
" In close communication. Sometimes God 
" Himself descended, and with voice distinct 
" Encouraged and approved with mystic words , 
" ' Fear not ; I am thy sun and shield.' And he 
" "Was prospered, and became a prince, despite 
" Our machinations for his fall. He died ; 
" And left his seed and faith behind. His race 
" Expanded, and mysteriously were sent 
" To Egypt, where they might have mingled with 
" That race, and there been lost as drops upon 
" The face of ocean ; but they mingled not, 
" But kept distinct, and grew a multitude, 
" And threatened to eat out that race ; at least, 
" To overtop them as the cane o'ertops 
" The humble weed ; until our king, alarmed — 
" I think he's here." — AU eyes were instant turned 
And rivited upon him as he sat 
In ghastly paleness, running o'er in mind 
"With frenzied spirit, all his acts on earth, 
His mock of God, the plagues, and Red Sea grave — 
" Our king essayed to crush them and destroy ; 
" But hke the rebel flower they grew beneath 
" His feet ; and with a high and mighty hand 
" Went out of Egypt, 'mid the bitter wail 
" Of mourning for her eldest bom and slaughter of 



30 Satan Chained^ 

" Her gods. 

" But lo ! their leader seemed to miss 
" Hjs road, and senseless marched against the sea ; 
" And there pent up, was thought an easy prey. 
" But note another fact. When Egypt's hosts 
" Pursuing pressed theii' rear, with eager scent 
" Of battle, spoil and lust, the opposing sea 
" Divided ; and the hosts of Israel marched 
" In safety down within the depths, and found 
" A path all smoothed and hardened to their feet ; 
" And moYed in comfort to the other shore 
" Between the crested walls of ocean waves 
" In light effulgent from a flaming cloud ; 
" Be while the Egyptians making hot pursuit, 
" Were wrapped in darkness, plagued and terrified ; 
" And at the dawn of day were whelmed beneath 
" The waves returning ; and at rising sun 
" No trace of them was seen, save here and there 
" A body or a garment floating, or 
" A helm or shield, washed up by ceaseless wave. 
" Alas ! abashed, alarmed we fled, we fled 
" The field. The gods of Egypt fell ; Jehovah reigned. 

" AgaiD, we hoped the wide and arid waste, 
" The wilderness, that lay before them would 
" By thirst and hunger overcome and blot 
" Them out from earth. But no ! a tree, cast in, 
" Made bitter waters sweet ; and bread distilled 
" From heaven along with dew : and e'en the rock 
" Gave water at the call of Moses and 
" The touch of his mysterious rod. 

" Again, 
" At Eephidim, we stirred up Amalek, 
" A numerous host, to extirpate at once 



Satan Chained. 31 

" The hated race. But Joshua in the field, 

" And Moses on the mount with hands uplift, 

" O'ermastered him, and swept like chaff before 

" The wind. And now a curse hangs over him ; 

" The race of Amalek to be extinct ; 

" And e'en his name at length shall perish from 

" The earth. We sought for victory and won 

" A curse. What means it ? Is there nothing here ? 

" At Horeb we had thought to make the host 
" Our own ; and while their leader was upon 
*' The mount, in talk with God, a calf we made 
" By Aaron, and the host adored, and eat 
" And drank and rose to play. We thought all safe, 
" And that our work was done ; and though the race 
" flight keep distinct, yet us they would adore 
" Instead of God. But 'twas in vain ; for lo ! 
" Their leader, after long delay, appears 
" Within the camp ; and with a sharp reproof, 
" And slaughter of a thousand, less or more, 
" Brought back the fickle tribes to God again : 
" A thiDg not known before since time began. 

" Ere this, when nations fell to worship us 
" Through images, or beasts, or sun, or stars ; 
" Or rather rose to worship us ; — for 'tis, 
" We hold, a rise to worship us, a fall 
" To worship God.— Ere this, we say, when we 
" Had once gained this important point, we held 
" Our own ; and ever kept the field, and laughed 
" To scorn our foe, ' Almighty ' called, and half 
" Believed by some. We held the nations fast 
" To our allegiance, never more to break 
" And turn to God again. But now, what see 
" We ? Why not be alarmed ? A nation won. 



32 Satan Chained. 

" And thought secure, back-sliding at a word, 

" And seeking G-od again, and that with tears 

" Of deepest degradation. Is not this 

" A new, a stai'thng fact ; without its peer 

" Within the Books of Hell ; more ominous 

" Than aught befell our cause in Egypt or 

" The sea ? What's this but presage of 

" Some time to come, when idols shall be thrown 

" As chaft away, and we neglected thence, 

'• The scorn of all the seryile hosts of Heaven T 

Here Satan faltered in his speech, his hps, 
Compressed and quivering, and his shaking frame 
And bloodshot eye, showed rage and ixnr^ scarce 
Controlled, and on the point of bursting all 
The bounds that decency and policy imposed. 
Amazed, all eyes were fixed, and though 
The host were hardened by the scenes of Hell, 
And every nerve was iron, yet all cheeks 
Were blanched, and every knee its fellow smote, 
Lest on themselves his passion fierce should fall. 
And they be rent to fragments in his ire 
For want of other foes. 

A moment's pause 
Ensaed, a silence fearful, such as Hell 
Alone can know. In even scale awhile 
His passion hung. It turned at length ; a sens» 
Of what and where he was prevailed ; and he 
Kesumed ; and then the pale and speechless host 
Took breath. 

"And when the spies returned from search 
" Of Canaan, and declared the land, though good, 
" Yet filled with armed men, of stature vast. 



Satan Chained, 33 

" That dwelt in cities walled to heaven, to whom 

" They seemed as grasshoppers ; and never could 

" Subdue that warlike race, and raze those walls, 

" And enter in and thence possess the land, 

" And ghastly fear, and weeping seized the host ; 

" And when, rebellion rising in the camp, 

" The disaffected tribes threw off the yoke 

" Of Moses, and proposed a leader new, 

" And quick return to Egypt, whence they came : 

" "When this occurred, what hopes were ours ! We thought 

" Again our ends obtained, that they woTild spurn 

" Henceforth the rod of Moses, and the robes 

" Of Aaron, and return, and be no more 

" Enthralled with priestly rules and separate laws 

" Of worship ; but be ours for evermore, 

" Or if not this, if God would not resign 

" Them to our power, as he has done with all 

" The other nations of the earth, yet they, 

*• Provoking to the utmost, would be swept 

" At once away by his avenging hand, 

"We hoped, from earth, and thus relieve us of 

" The fear of future ills from Abram's race. 

" But no : The deep could leave its bed to drown 
" A world, and his exterminating wrath 
" Burned hot on Sodom. We ourselves know well 
" The fury of his ire, implacable 
" Before, upon his foes. His ire ! We felt 
" Its utmost, unrelenting stroke, when foiled 
" In battle on the plains of Heaven. No truce 
" To us : no gracious terms vouchsafed of peace ; 
" Unasked *tis true ; but yet, if offered, would 
" Have been received, if on conditions such 
" As due to vanquished foes of merit high ; 



34: Satan Chained, 

" As left ns masters of ourselTes, and gave 

" Us room sufficient for our empire in 

" Some spacious c^uarter of his Heayen. But no ; 

" Instead of that, we felt the direful shock 

" Of ThunderboltSj in his relentless rage, 

" Tho' OTerthi'own ; and keenest toiiure fi'om 

" His arrows, bai'bed and sticking fast within 

" Our souls. Xo truce ! — "We fled, but he pursued ; 

*•' And not content with that, his engines swift 

" And di'eadful on our suffeiing rear, and all 

" The towers and bastions as we passed in flight 

" Precipitate toward Eeayen bounds, opened on 

" Oui' broken lines with fire destiTictiTe, and 

" In quick succession shot forth ponderous orbs ' 

" Of death, and lightning shafts, that spread dismay 

" And direst hayoc through our myriad hosts, 

" And OYeithrew anew the overthrown ; 

" Till forced, we leaped the abyss that landed us 

" In Hell. And nrjir no truce ! for yet his hate 

" Insatiate pursues the yanquished here ; 

" Pursues, although we were the glory of 

" His realm, in worth his ec[ual, if not so 

" In power, the ehte of Heayen. And still no tiiice 

" To us. And yet this dastard, slayish crew, 

" Toward them, how quick his anger is appeased ' 

" A prayer of Moses sets all right again, 

" Or if not wholly right, yet so far right 

'•' As spares the miscreant race. And though the fate 

" Announced, is forty years of travel, and 

" The death of all rebelling ere they reach 

*' The Proinised Land, yet this preseryes it still, 

" And much to our dismay ; for who canrot 

'^ But see that this will leave a nation younc^ 



Satan Chained, 35 

" And yig'rous, trained by Moses, pious called, 
" Though mean we deem ; but yet adverse to us, 
" And far less likely to espouse our cause 
" Than their devoted sires ? 

" From all these facts, 
" And others, meaning less or more, compared 
" And pondered, we may further judge, 
" That riEST ; 'tis not the individuals that 
" Our wily foe intends to save, but 'tis 
" The race of Abram. 'Tis his seed that he 
" Intends to keep on earth ; and second : that 
" The use is future. How far future who • 
" Can tell ? The longer time, the mightier is 
" The growth. For where's the nation yet that has 
" Been blessed by Abram's seed ? And thied : what else 
" Soe'er is meant by this conjectured scheme, 
" This system of events begun and yet 
" To be produced, it means no good to us : 
" But good, perhaps unbounded good to man. 
" They say that 'mongst the attributes of God 
" There's one called meecy, which can pardon sin. 
" ('Twas ne'er vouchsafed to us ; and hence we know 
" It not, nor wish to ; if the knee must bend, 
" And we must beg, submissive at his feet. ) 
*' No never, never that. I'd rather feel 
" Ten thousand thousand Hells than fall thus low, 
" And ask for pardon at his tyrant hands. 
" So say you all." — And here all bowed assent. 
But with a ghastly smile, and look forlorn 
That told how desolate they felt their lot. 
How sure that hope to them could never ccme. — 
" But sinful men, may-hap, will pray and seek 



36 Scutan Chained, 

" ForgiTeness of their sins. And this strange plot — 
" "Who knows ? — may be a scheme of mercy for 

'• That Terr end — that God ca2s papj>ox sc\. 

'' ' The woiIA^"''s sixd shall bbose the seepe>'t"s head.' " 

**' And who can say but from this race a seed 

" May come.'" — And here each face thronghont the host 

Grew ghastly pale ; and faintness seized all hearts ; 

And Satan staggered to his seat and fell 

As struck with death. A pause ensned. And Hell 

Seemed motionless and dead. !S"o sign or hope 

Of life appeai'ed ; a second death seemed like 

A pall to settle on the myriad throng ; 

"While 2^1 wifhont was trembling and despair, 

As if the final judgment had aiTived. 

"With in J it was one awfnl chamal house ; 

A scene that Hell had never known before. 

The throng had swooned, and lay m. ranks immense, 

Like boundless forest felled by winds of heaxen. 

Their glaring eye-balls in their*sockets set, 

Their hellish features, stiff and sunken., shot 

The dii'est horror through the failing nerves 

Of hardiest devil venturing there to view 

The unwonted sight. 

At length a gasp of life 
Pietuming, sighed and gurgled thi'ough the throng. 
Then all was still again : another gasp — 
And still another— and at length revived. 
Each silently resumed his seat : and gazed 
Upon his fellow, stupitied. and yet 
Alarmed. And Satan his ; and sat upright 

Such wondrous power inherent in that word 
The Seed ; -^hose import none could tell, but all 
Could feel. A death-like sUence still prevailed, 



Satan Chained. 37 

And Hell for once was humble and subdued. 

Not long ; for burning thoughts soon coursing through 

Their veins, and passion fierce reacting strong, 

And walling every feverish pulse again, 

Eestored the temper lost ; awakened zeal 

To speak, and keenest gust to hear. 

" The woman's seed shall bruise the serpent's head ; 
" And who can say," continued Satan, *' but 
" The Seed may come from out this race ; 
" "Whose ponderous heel, though bruised by us, may grind 
" Us into powder ? or perhaps he'll tread us down 
" "With foot resistless to a lower Hell 
" Than we have ever dreamed. And yet this can 
" Not be ; for none but God can safe contend 
" "With om- Almighty strength ; whiph once we tried 
" Upon the plains of Heaven, successful, and 
" "Withstood the fiercest onsets of his hosts 
" Angehc ; led by chiefs of mightiest deeds, 
" And deemed in strength but less than God himself. 
" And yet we held our ground, not one short hour, 
" But thrice the space that measures day and night ; 
" And had been fighting still, or, conquering, driven 
" Them from their Heaven to this our Hell ; had not 
" The Son, alarmed, flew to the rescue, and 
" "With direst arms, unknown before, the scale 
* Of Battle turned. If such could not o'ermatch 
" Our godlike strength, then how can mortal man ? 
" And yet the threat'ning stands, ^ the woman's seed 
" Shall bruise the serpent's head.' "What is the seed ? 
" And then the bruising what ? And whence the strength 
" To do the deed ? 'Tis mystery all : for God 
" Can only do, if that he can, what seems 
" That threat to mean. " It must be man, must 



38 Satan C/iainecL 

" Be God, else 'twill not be the seed, or else 

" Our heads will not be bruised ; be sure of that, 

" In short, it must be man or not the Seed 

" And then it must be God or not the deed. 

" But how can it be both at once ? both God 

" And man, the Seed, both God and man ? We know 

" Not ; nor can e'en conjectm^e give rehef 

" To our perplexed and painful thoughts. But we 

" Can see this much, that thi'ough this race our shrines 

" And altars and oui- worship might be spumed, 

" Ourselves be made the scorn of all on earth, 

" And thence the scorn of Heaven. But yet the threat 

" Seems something more, ' A bruising of the head.' 

" Perhaps 'tis but a threat of idle words, 

" T' encourage man^nd frighten us the while, 

" And not intended to be put in force. 

" Yet this is not hke our great foe ; for what 

" He says we too well know he means. We say 

" 'Tis mystery ; and here we give it up ; 

*' And wait for future times to solve the doubt 

" Meantime, we must be watchful, and exert 
" Our utmost skill to thwart his every plan, 
" And turn his pui'poses to our account. — 

" And now permit me to digTess, and note 
" The immediate cause of my alarm. — 

" I've had 
" A dream." — And here an inadvertent smile 
Kan through the assembly, and unconscious eyes 
Met eyes, to think a dream should e'en be named. 
Much more rehed upon as ground of fear. — 
Though all know well the dreams of Hell, yet none 
Eegard them as of gi-ave portent ; but count 
Them as mere ravings of the spirit damned 



Satan Chained. 39 

When reason for a moment drops the rein. 
O ! dreams are rife in Hell. They roam abroad, 
With head erect, and fiery eyes ; and roll 
Theii' snaky folds, and bare theii' deadly fangs ; 
And dart their bloody tongues ; and hot pursue 
The sleeping, fleeing wretch o'er desert tracts, 
Through caverns deep, o'er frozen mountain tops, 
And fiery plains. — He flees, he flees ! And they 
Pursue, pursue. — His vigor fails at length — 
He breathless falls. — They seize him, and he shrieks. 
And starts bewildered from his frightful couch, 
And dares not sleep again, though dead for rest. 
Some dreams steal softly as the evening dew. 
And bear the spirit up, and gently waft him 
To the fields of bliss. — He treads anew 
His native Heaven. He breathes its vital air ; 
And rushes fiercely to the living springs ; 
And scoops the sparkHng stream ; and eager brings 
It to his burning lips ; in vain ! then leaps 
Impetuous to the bending trees, that hang 
Exhaustless with the fruit of hfe. He plucks, 
He eats — unsated still, till frantic grown. 
He wakes, and finds himself in Hell. 

" I've had 
" A dream," continued Satan, " not as dreams 
" Are wont to come to us, a shadow ; but 
" A substance tangible ; more like, it seemed, 
" A living verity ; that wrought itself 
" Upon my *soul, and fixed it there as firm 
" As thought or sense ; a dream — start not — a dream, 
" If it may so be called ; or waking vision ; which 
" Shall last as long as this my being lasts ; 
" And which, mayhap, portends some dread event 



4:0 Satan Chained. 

" To me, and to us all perchance. Methought — 

" But how can feeble words convey a dream ? 

" A dream we know can only be conveyed 

" By being felt. Methought — but first permit 

*' Me to premise — 'Twas after I had made 

" The tour of Hell, to view anew the length 

" And breadth of this our realm ; but more, 

" To mark the state of all the posts, and view 

" Official all the doings of our lords, 

" To whom were given important trusts ; and to 

" Allay what feuds might have arisen ; and to 

" Exhort and urge to duty the remiss ; 

" And to reward the faithful ; and to make 

" What new arrangements time and progress might 

" Kequire ; in short, to see that Hell was what 

" It ought to be. 

I need not here recall 
" The whole ; nor could I, if disposed. Suffice 
" To say, I found Hell prosperous ; far beyond 
" What I had known before. I was amazed 
" To note th' extent of our domain ; and could 
" But take a hasty view of things ; and then 
" To leave particulars to future day 
" To be reported by the lord, or prince 
" Who held control of each respective state. 

" Three years I spent — so vast the field ! — ^yes, three 
" Great years of Hell, on this exclusive task, 
*' And then the work was only seen, not done. 

" Returned, I sat within my palace hall ; 
" The princes all had made report enjoined ; 
" And each had brought the vast statistics of 
*' His charge ; and all had been recorded in 
" The Books, thus kept. Amazement filled my soul 



Satan Chained. 41 

" To see the sum, the census of the damned. 

" I thought of Hell, how great, and said within 
" Myself : ' Is this not Hell, great Hell that I 
" Command, great Hell that I have builded up ! 
" If not as wide, yet populous as Heaven ; 
" And promises a mightier growth henceforth. 
*' So, if I missed the throne of God I here 
" A greater throne have found. I envy not 
" Our common foe his reign. His reign ! how tame ! 
" His subjects, how devoid of noble aims ! 
" Fit subjects for fit king ; while here, we have 
" The chivalry, the pure untainted blood, 
" The aiistocracy, high born, high bred, 
" The choicest gems of all the universe.' 
" 'Twas thus I thought, I thought within myself.'* 

And here a smile of approbation ran 
Along the seated ranks ; and pride and self 
Conceit, swelled every bosom, and induced 
A kind of faith, that they, the damned, debauched 
And worthless, were in excellence above 
The holy angels of the living God. 
Such, such the folly of the Chivalry ! 
The chivalry of earth, and chivalry 
Of Hell. They meet and estimate themselves, 
And vote their rank without a blush. If aught 
(If pity had no place for spirits lost) 
Could ever cause a smile in Heaven, 'tis such 
A sight as this. 

" And while my breast was fired 
" With present things, and greater yet to come," 
Continued Satan, " Sudden sleep came o'er 
" Me : not indeed our usual sleep, disturbed 
" And fitful, but a sleep of sound repose, 



42 Satan Chained. 

" Like that of Heaven, our former quiet home. 
" (You all know that, though never tasted here.) 

" Methought," said he, " that I was on the earth, 
" And stood upon a mount in Araby ; 
" And saw below, the tents of Israel, spread 
" In goodly prospect ; and in order planned 
" "With wond'rous skill. I saw her thousands in 
" And round the tents, enjoying ease, or close 
" At needful tasks, as inclination or 
" As duty called. 'Twas in the heat of day. 
" The cloud, called shekena,was spread above, 
" And gave a cooling freshness to the air, 
" Not much unlike the bracing air of Heaven. 
" I saw, besides, the tent of worship, where 
" Of late had been set up by our great foe, 
" His daily service ; which consists, as all 
" Who hear me are aware, of offerings made 
" Of beasts and birds of harmless kind ; the lamb, 
" The goat, the os, the dove, the pigeon, and 
" "What else the people bring of wine and oil 
" And cakes ; all offered up by Aaron and 
" The minor priests, to him they worship as 
" Their God. 

" 'Twas tame ! 'twas stupid ! and I said 
" Within myself, ' And is this all? Is this 
" The best that God can do to raise 
" Him in the estimation of the world? 
" A stupid worship, offering stupid beasts 
" Alone. Some might be used, if with them mixed 
" Were those of higher nature, and of joowers 
" Superior ; the noble steed, that scours 
" The plain, the lion king, and tiger strong, 
" That scatter terror througfh the timVl herds, 



Satan Chained. 43 

" And battle ever for supreme control ; 

" Tiie eagle bold, that dwells among the peaks, 

" And soaring up to heaven renews his fires 

" By bathing in the sun ; the furious boar, 

" That braves the forest king : and mightier yet, 

" Behemoth and leviathan ; and last, 

" And worthier still, a human sacrifice, 

" A man or woman, or a tender child, 

" Or virgin fair. If these were mixed tlierewith, 

" As we reqmre on earth, methought our foe 

" Might somewhat vie with us in homage paid. 

" But no ! These stupid beasts, abundant found, 
" And cheap ! No costly noble offering does 
" Their God require. — And is this all ? if so, 
" Methought, ' it is unworthy of a God, 
" And will forever be the laiigh of Hell. 

" But is this all ? the thought sprang in my mind, 
" Wliich now seemed luminous, prophetic grown, 
" ' Pekhaps it is not all. It may,' methought, 
" ' Foreshadow sometliing yet to come, a kind 
" Of worship differing far from what w^e have 
" As yet or seen or heard on earth ; a kind 
" To which all these may be a key. These beasts 
" By Aaron slain, this blood, and wine, and oil, 
" These cakes, and sheaves, and fruits, and firstlings of 
" The flocks and herds ; these feasts, and jubilees, 
" And cleansing rites, and vows ; the running stream ; 
" And goats, one slain, the other led and left 
" In desert land, upon whose head the hand 
" Of priest was laid ; the sacred fire, the ark, 
" And vail, the mercy seat, the cloud by day, 
" And fire by night, the pascal lamb, but roast, 
" Not boiled ; and blood besprinkled o'er the doors. 



44: Satan Chained^ 

" AH spotless when alive, and slain, a feast 

" For all, (but of unbroken bone ;) with herbs 

" Of bitter taste, and bread unleavened, eat 

" TVith sandals on, and staff in hand, and loins 

'•' Begu't ; the show bread, ever ready on 

" The table of the Lord ; the day of geeat 

" Atoxe3IE2sT, when the priest with blood of goat 

" And bullock passes through the vail, and there 

" Before, and on the mercy seat, sheds forth 

"The crimson drops ; in priestly garments clad ; 

" The altar, where the offerings bui-n, the bread 

"From heaven, (the manna,) given as daily food ; 

" The parted sea ; the water-yielding rock ; 

" And Aaron made high priest ; and e'en the camp 

" Itself of Israel, and the sep'rate tribes, 

" With Moses at their head, commanding all : 

" All these may be a key, may be a key 

" To something yet to come ; and may explain 

" That something when revealed, as nothing else 

" Could do, a worship, mayhap, worthy of a God. 

" And as I gazed, and saw the whole, 
" In doubt to fear or laugh, lo ! Aaron stood 
" Before the altar. In his hand he held 
" The shoulder of a lamb, an offering brought, 
" Ordained by law, to cleanse a leper vile, 
" The ' heave shoulder ;' and in the basket lay 
" The ' wave breast,' brought with oil and cakes. He raised 
" The shoulder thus, in up-right line ; when, lo ! 
" It left a track in au', a shadow of 
" A staff, or piUar more it seemed. He took 
" The breast and waved it thus, in even line. 
" It left a shadowy track ; and both combined 
" Produced a cross, a shadow of a cross. 



Satan Chained. ■iS 

" And stained with blood. I shrank instinct with fear, 

" That cross, a simple thing yei full of dread, 

" I felt a i:)ang unknown before, as if 

" The fingers of eternal death, unseen, 

" Were twisting out of place the cords of Hfe. 

" Revived at length, and shattered nerves composed, 
" I saw the cross, the blood, the leper cleansed. 
" I spell-bound strove in vain to fly ; I thought 
" What possible connection could there be 
" Between a cross and cleansing of a sore 
" And dying leper ? * Yet,- methought, ' the fact 
" *Is so, at least, to-d;.y.' Perplexed, I left 
" To future time to solve the doubt. And then 
" 'The blood, what means the blood upon the cross ? ' 
" I mused, still spell-bound held, and half afraid, 
" When, lo ! from out the tents of Judah came 
" A lion of the mightiest strength, and crouched • 
" Beneath the cross, in attitude to spring, 
" As tiger in the path of traveller 
" Belate. He sprang not then, but waiting seemed 
" His own convenient time to spring, and rend 
" Me as a Md. Lost ! ! Lost ! I seemed ! all hope 
" Of future being fled. And next, it seemed 
*' I soared aloft, was worshiped as a god, 
*• By all on earth and all the hosts above. 
" And age on age elapsed, and still I rode 
" Sublime ; and ruled the spheres ; ' and nested in 
" The stars ; and seemed regainiDg fast the height 
" I'd lost, of glory and of power. And more, 
" The throne itself of God, to which we all 
" Aspire, seemed just within my grasp. I felt, 
" In fine, inherent power, and growing might, 
" That gave full promise of eternal sway. 



4S Satan Chanied, 

" And high possession of the gorgeous Heaven 

" And bright and awful mount that God now holds, 

""^lien at my feet the gods of Heaven should bow, 

" Or fly on lig-htning wing to do my will ; 

"TThile I should revel there in wanton ease, 

" And to eternity, take in my fill 

" Of every pleasure, drawn from every source 

" Of luxury that Heaven affords, and given 

" To me through every sense. 

'■ My soul was fired ; 
" My apj)etites seemed gaining strength immense, 
" And making preparation for the lusts 
" "Within my reach : "When, lo ! the cross appeared 
" Again. The shadow of a cross 'twas once ; 
" But now 'twas fixed and tangible. Its foot 
"Eeached down to Hell ; its top reached up to Heaven. 
"Its arms exteDded wide, as if t' embrace 
" The universe of God ; a wonder great 
"To earth and Heaven and Hell And as I gazed 
" The cross grew luminous, and ht with rays 
*•' Eesplendent all the works of God. The stars 
" Eetired unseen, and suns were swallowed up, 
" Then glorious hght, not needed now, withdrawn. 
" The cross was all in all. A cloudless and 
*•' Eternal sun it seemed. "When, lo ! a voice, 
*' Me thought, ' 'Tis nxKHH) ! ' and the frame at once 
" Of universal nature shook, as if 
" Its end had come. A crash came up fi'om Hell, 
" And groans, as if her adamantine face 
" Had broken in, and she was crushed with all 
" Her hving milhons ; crushed and ground beneath 
" The ponderous foot of our great foe ; and I, 
" It seemed, that instant fell like LiGm^iyG dow:^ 



Satan CJicdned. 47 

'• From Heaven. And as I fell — not flew — but fell, 
*' Metliougiit I saw the jaw^s of bottomless 
" Damnation, yawning wide, with fiery gulf, 
" To swallow me beyond all reach of hope. 
*' This woke me, horror-struck. 

" 'Twas thus I dreamed, 
" If dreamed, or felt, if felt, or saw, if saw, 
" As in a trance with open eyes, within 
** My palace hall. And yet I feel it is 
" Not all a dream, a phantom merety of 
'' The brain ; but has a meaning w^iich we must 
" Divine. And if portending ill, as needs 
" It must, that ill we must elude ; or if 
" Not that, at least defer till latest day 
" Of possible extent. You have the dream, 
" As far as words can show a dream ; and yet 
" It is no more the dream than feeble words 
" Describing pain are pain itself. I this inferred 
" From what I dreamed, or felt, or saw : That ill 
" More dreadful than we yet have known, is kept 
" In store for me ; and if for me, not more 
" For me, than you ; for if our kingdom shall 
" Be overthrown, a common ruin will 
" Involve us all. 

" But still, to put beyond 
" The shadow of a doubt the question of 
" Portent, before I sent the call that you've 
" Obeyed — (Such loyalty scarce Heaven itself 
" Can boast) — I t()f)k the consecrated cup, 
" The great Divining Cup of Hell. I cast 
" Within, the dregs ; then whirled the cup wdth due 
" Observance of the magic rules that make 
" The future sure, from mystic signs. I quick 



4:8 Satan Chained. 

" Inverted it : Then paused awhile with awe. 
*•' At length I took it up to see what there 
" Might be revealed, pertaining to our dream. 
" I looked within, and shudered to behold 
" The self-same imagery ; the tented tribes, 
" The cross, the Hon, and my fall from Heaven. 
" Beside, the cup ran blood, alarming sight ! 
" And then I took the consecrated urn." 

This urn and cup were wonderments of Hell, 
The work alone of Mulciber ; for who 
But he was able to design, or skill 
Possessed, to execute such samples of 
Amazing art ? of ample size, and cast 
Of massy gold, and bm'nished to the height 
Of art in Hell or Heaven ; and laid, besides, 
"With rarest gems from out the choicest mines 
Of Hell. They flashed with hght of richest hue, 
And filled with rapture every eye that saw. 

Upon the forms of each were wrought with skill 
Unequalled, many a scene in Heaven, to hold 
In mind the glorious state from which they feU. 
For none desire to lose remembrance of 
Their former joys, though now in pain ; but aU, 
E'en Devils lost, find some relief, though mixed 
With pangs, in counting o'er the scenes of days 
Gone by, of happy days though never to 
Return. 

But Satan most was wrought thereor 
In acts of high renown in Heaven. 
He rode subhme amidst the endless throng 
That met to celebrate the birth of Time ; 
Which in procession vast, to music moved ; 
To music, such as Heaven alone could give, 



Satan Chained, 49 

With banners waving, and with shouts that rocked 
The very hills, a prominence to him 
Accorded for his worth esteemed, and deep 
And searching wisdom, by assent of all. 

Again, appeared embossed in hving forms, 
The day to Satan most of note in Heaven ; 
The day when he was placed above the Sons 
Of God, the high Arch-Angels of that realm 
Immense ; the highest he, though others high. 
None envied, for he'd reached the goal ; he had 
Excelled in all that God, or angels love ; 
In might, in heart, in intellect ; and all 
Were happy to concede his place ; and God 
Himself from off his holy mount, distinct 
Proclaimed him first Arch- Angel of the host 
Of Heaven, on that triumphal day. 

And then 
Were given him all the ensigns of his rank ; 
The rich regalia of a prince thus high ; 
A crown, a sword, and robes of dazzhng white, 
And royal purple of the richest dye, 
And, last, not least, assigned him as his due, 
The Urira and the Thummim ; oracles 
Of old renown, which gave responses of 
Unerring truth. 

All this, and more, in gems 
And gold in high rehef was T\Tought tliereon ; 
Amazing skill ! and hightened by the rich 
And glorious scenery of Heaven. — " I took,'* 
Continued he, " the consecrated Urn." — 

This Cup and Urn were consecrated each 

To serve as oracles for future times ; 
4 



50 Saian Chained, 

From which events to come, or near or more 
Eemote, might be revealed by lot or signs 
Of such significance as left no doubt 
Of their approach ; and made as substitutes 
In Hell, for those great oracles in Heaven, 
The Uiim and the Thummim, lost bv him, 
Alas ! in his defection, vrhen he fell. 

The day was great, of consecration ; great 
In multitude, and in atrocious deeds. 
'Twas more hke HeU than any day before. 
The work had all been done, and Mulciber 
Had brought them finished to his lord ; his work. 
The greatest yet acliieved, resplendent to 
The eye in hving hght and gorgeous hues, 
And to the touch, of finish exquisite, 
And mould of highest taste. 

Th' appointed day 
Had come to demonize, and place them in 
The dark arcanum of the mysteries; 
And must remain, and be consulted not 
But on occasions rare, of import vast, 
And such as should concern then- greatest weal. 

They both were borne on high ; and aU the great. 
The princes, potentates of that vast realm, 
Moved after in procession such as earth 
Knows not ; and then, the lower powers, in line 
Of endless leno'th. And havino- reached at last 
The destined goal, the vessels stayed, and round 
Them wheeled this fine immense. And as each passed 
He cursed, (such cursing earth can never know,) 
And blasphemed God ; decried the Holy Ghost, 
And called on Erebus, the lowest deep, 
For aid, for potent aid. 



Satan Chained, 51 

This done, the Cup 
And Urn, thus charged with devihsh influence, 
Were borne by Satan's hands, as priest of Hell — 
(For there the spiritual and temporal pow'rs 
Are both combined in one, one head supreme, 
And Satan claims and holds that high estate ; 
And thence the precedent found way to earth, 
A spiritual power and temporal in one.) 

The cups were borne by Satan's hands, and placed 
"With due solemnity from out the sight 
Of vulgar, nay, of princely eyes. This done. 
The day passed on with HeUish feats, of arms 
And gladiatorial shows, that shocked that world 
Itself ; and closed with crucifixions dire 
Of thrice ten thousand thousand helpless souls 
Of lower caste. 

*' The consecrated Urn 
" I took," continued Satan, " and within — 
" I, fearful, cast the fatal lots. On one 
" I wrote ' The Woman's seed ;' the next, * The Tribes 
" ' Of Israel ;' and the third, ' Of Judah ;' and 
" The fourth, ^ The Cross and Lion ;' on the fifth 
" I wrote ' The bruising of the Serpent's head ;' 
" And on the sixth and last, ' My fall from Heaven/ 
'' Six lots in all, thus named, the rest were blanks. 
" And then I shook the Urn, and mingled all 
" With strictest care, until they seemed involved 
" Beyond the reach of utmost chance to bring 
" Them up again from out that mass, thus mixed, 
" Within the number e'en of millions drawn ; 
" Much less in order as they reached the Urn 
" I blindly drew six times, six lots in all, 



52 Batan Chained, 

** And lo ! in order as I put them in, 

" The ' Seed,' the ' Tribes/ and that of ' Judah ' came ; 

" The ' Cross and Lion ;' next the ' bruising ' rose, 

" And last and more appalhng still, my 'fall,' 

" My direful fall from Heaven. Alarmed, I gave 

" The call that brought you here. The common weal 

" Demands our care. This race, of late but slaves, 

" This race — it must be so — is kept and fed 

" And nourished up as instruments of our 

" Great foe to work our utter ruin, and 

" Of them the Tribe of Judah, and from this 

" It seems the threatened seed must come — the seed 

" To bruise ; and work our final fall ; and this 

" To be achieved in some mysterious way 

*' Connected with a Cross, and stained with blood. 

" Of this perchance the blood, by Aaron shed, 

" In daily sacrifice is but a type. 

*' This race, this hated race then, now in march 
" Through Araby to Canaan's better land, 
" Must be our care ; our care or to destroy, 
" And quite expunge from off the face of earth ; 
" Or better, mayhap, still, to take by guile, 
" And quite transfer from him, our deadly foe, 
" To us, for ever bound hereafter in 
" Allegiance strong. And then the seed if sprung 
'* Therefrom, shall not be his, but ours, to do 
" Our will and turn his strength on Him instead 
'•Of us ; thus foiling this his scheme with arms 
" Of his own make. But it remains with you, 
" As well as me, to judge. Let each then speak 
" His mind, in fuU debate ; propose, reject, 
" And freely show his reasons for the same. 
" The time requires our utmost thought, and cool 



Satan Chained, 53 

" Deliberation ; for a step too far, 

" Or one not far enough, or made too soon, 

'' Or one not made in time, may work the loss 

"Of all our hopes ; and leave us so involved 

" That endless years may not repair the fault ; 

" But like an avalanche, as each proceeds, 

" Roll ruin waxing greater, heavier, more 

" Tremendous still, for endless ages on 

" Our undeserving heads. — But no ! this fate," 

Continued Satan, — and his form drew up 

And showed its full gigantic size ; his eyes 

Flashed fire ; and all his features gave full proof 

Of direst rage within, a burning hell, 

And deep determination to succeed — 

" This fate shall not be ours," continued he, 

" Shall not, for Hell has means exhaustless, and 

" We'll bring to bear upon our foe and this 

" One scheme of his, the skill of dl her gods 

" Combined, as yet untried against him, and 

" We'll baffle all his efforts to destroy. 

" Or faihng this, we'll try another field ; 

" We'll rouse the entire damned. We'll ransack Hell, 

" And scour the universe for arms, and break 

" Resistless on his hosts, wherever found ; 

" Or here in Hell, or through unbounded space, 

*' Or o'er the battlements of Heaven itself ; 

" And sweep them, panic-struck, and overwhelmed, 

" Like chaff ; and teach him, though he claims supreme, 

" He may pursue too far a conquered foe." 

And here the eloqucDce of Satan passed all bounds. 
While he described the wreck of Hell 
" Should they be wanting to themselves in care 



54 Satan Chained, 

And ceaseless effort in this time of need, 
Of greatest need, this crisis in theii' weal ; 
When all was being poised m even line ; 
The scale was trembhng, and 'twas theu^s to sway 
The beam, and cause thek fate to rise, or fall, 
To fall — then all was lost ! then- doom was fixed ! 
The golden moment could not be recalled, 
The haughty foe would tread upon then- necks, 
And di'ag them captiye at his chariot wheels. 
To i-ise — then they hencefoi-th should roam abroad 
As gods supreme, the yictor foiled ; no more 
Pent up in HeU ; but reaping pleasm-es fuU 
And endless, mayhap, e'en in Heayen itself ; 
"With aU the angels of the Liying God 
Subdued and subject to their wiU, and bound 
To minister to their desh'es ; and God 
Himself, retired and awed, should fear to let 
His thunder loose lest they should storm his moimt 
And oyer come." — Presumptuous words I yet such 
Is HeU. 

"Wliat more he said the Muse 'tempts not 
To sing, as quite uneqal to the task. 
For earth knows no such eloquence as HeU ; 
"Were spmts, lost 'tis true, and damned, but yet 
Petain then- mental powers but partially 
Impaired : And Satan his ; most eloquent 
Of aU in Heayen before his faU. Else he 
Had not seduced such hosts of spuits wise 
To hazzard certain bhss ; and to conspu'e 
With him ; and risk it aU in battle joined 
Against Almighty God. — "The Muse 'tempts not." 
Suffice to say, the yast assembly hung 
Upon his words, which flowed hke oU, and with 



Satan Chained. 55 

Persuasive force enchained them all. Then quick, 
And breaking forth with rage, anon he starts 
The wildest storm of passion. Driven to fury, all 
Forth leaping from their seats, with beating wings, 
And hand to hilt, and haK-drawn blades 
Exposed, and bloody visage, and an eye of fire, 
Burst forth in tumult and the wildest shouts ; 
Such shouts as only Hell could hear, or bear. 

Again, he eased them dowm, as falling winds 
The high tempestuous weaves of ocean, lest 
Their fury, overreaching every bound. 
With wild dehrium, should unfit them 
For the call on hand, and thus defeat the cause 
They came to save. 

The per-oration closed, 
At length he sat. And then a shout went up. 
Such shout as earth has never lieard ; a shout. 
Not made by feeble men, but spirits strong. 
It rent the air, and shook the distant hills, 
And rolled tumultuous over desert tracts, 
And broke in echoes back with deafening roar, 
Till Hell at large seemed answ^ering with acclaim. 
And fraught with furor of th' exciting scene. 

Again, and then again the shout burst forth, 
Midst waving wangs, and storming feet, and shrieks 
And yells, that could or would not be suppressed ; 
Till wildest rage had run the round of three 
Times three, and scarcely then their furious breasts 
Were calmed, and order, broken, quite restored. 

Such w^as the effect of eloquence in Hell. 
O, Eloquence ! artistic gift of God ! 
Vouchsafed for good, to rouse to virtue, and 
The act of noble, god-hke deeds ; or with 



56 Satan Chained. 

Enchanting phrase, to iirge accepted truths, 
Or those as yet unknown ; the power of mind 
On mind ; first heard in HeaTen, where throngs 
Enchained by some high-gifted tongue forgot 
All time and place ; and rayished by the spell 
Of flowing words and clearest logic ; dressed 
In richest drapery of thought, heard Ood 
Set forth in all his wonderous ways, and high 
Benificence for creature good ; or were 
Enofaofed more firmly hence to do his will 
And love and reverence him, as God Supreme ; 
Or zealous made, to aim at gi-eater hights 
Of excellence of heart and mind, and make 
More glorious still that glorious Heaven, their sure, 
Their everlasting home. " Artistic gift 
Of God !'' But how perverted from its use 
Divine, in earth and Hell I to make the worse 
Appear the better cause ; to rob of right. 
And move to wickedness the hstening crowd. 
" Such was the eftect of eloquence in Hell." 
The furious current, ebbing out, at length 
A calm ensued ; and ah the multitude 
In silence sat. Each gathered up his thoughts, 
Thus scattered, and his normal state of mind 
And temper slowly gained. Each was himself 
Again ; and all took breath ; and waited what 
Might next appear. — A pause. — Tlie pause at length 
"Was fearful. On that moment hung, perhaps. 
The destiny of Hell, And weighty thoughts 
Began to press their spirits down ; and each 
On other looked, with slow but wistful glance \ 
Not forward to begin, but rather chose to hear j 
From modesty, not half so much as want, 



Satan Chained, 67 

Instinctive felt, of strength to oppose, or skill 
To circumvent a foe so strong and wise 
As God, th' omnipotent, omniscient God. 

Their com^age sank to zero. Hell was nigh 
To caving in, and would, could wisdom but 
A lodgement find wdthin their breasts ; but no : 
A devil is not tamed by better thoughts ; 
And brought to better deeds by reason's reign. 
He runs his length of sin, and hurries on 
Amain, nor stops his mad career till chains 
Or thunder-bolts, confine, or awe him down. 
'Twas thus with these. The ebb had run its course 
And drained the spirit from their very souls. 
They sat aghast, and hung their heads in deep 
Despair ; not long ; for now the refluent wave 
Appears, and slowly rises brimming up ; 
And all again are ready to attempt 
Some plan of force or fraud against then- foe, 
As best may be advised. 

On Satan's right. 
And near the steps that mounted to the throne, 
Sat B'elzebub, w^ho rose with stately mein. 
And aspect grave ; a venerable god ; 
With hoary locks, of massy giant frame, 
And facial show of intellectual strength ; 
But hard and wicked to the practised eye. 

" Your Majesty, and you my lords, may't please, 
" I feel the force of what youi* highness has 
" Advanced, for I am weU aware our foe 
" Implacable, contemplates to us some 
" Dire harm, and this he fixed upon when first 
" We drew to our allegiance in the bowers 
" Of Eden, Adam and his youthful spouse. 



§8 Satan Chained, 

" Chagrined at our success, and filled Tdth rage, 
" He swore an oath that shook the depths of Hell, 
" That though successful then, the tune should come 
" "WTien we should see the wreck of all oui- hopes, 
" And find a deeper Hell proportioned to 
" Om^ crimes : ^hy so ? Can we not foil again 
" "Whom foiled we once? and if indeed that race 
'• Is destined for this use, I join with oui' 
" Beloved Chief, that they must be our care. 
" But how oiu' care to work the end desi<:?ned "? 

o 

" Shall we succeed by guile '? or fuiious sweep, 
" In some unguarded moment, them from earth? 
" The mind of all should be expressed. And here 
" Permit me to suggest that our high Chief 
" Should put the needful propositions now 
" To Yote. For though 'tis true each one alone 
" May err, yet all in conclave joined possess 
" Infalhbihty." Here, here it is. 
Infalhbihty ! fii'st broached in Hell. 
And save in Hell where could such doctrine have 
Its bnth ? and who but devils could or would 
Bring such a doctrine in to curse the earth? 
"Infalhbihty!" said B'elzebub. 
And here each devil smiled a helhsh grin ; 
Instinct, forsooth, with futiu'e use of that 
Infernal word. O HeU ! concoctor of 
The woes of men ! This stands thy master wori: 
Since Adam's fall ; an accident at first ; 
But seized upon in tf cer times to fill 
The earth with woe. Infalhbihty, 
Alas, alas ! through years of dreary length 
With scarlet clad ancl drunk with blood of sainto i 
Then Malcham rose and with confiding ah- 



8atan Chained, 69 

Proposed what all, he thought, would judge but right 

To their beloved Chief, who was the head 

(How great the boon to have it thus !) the head 

Of both the spiritual aud temp'ral powers : 

'Twas this, he urged : that through all time to corae 

He shall be styled " His Hohness," a^ due 

His piety and moral worth, — 'Twas put 

And carried with a rising Yote, not one 

Dissenting ; Satan, with a bend and bland 

And self-complacent smile, received, well pleased, 

The proffered prefix to his saintly name. 

" His Holiness " shall be his style, at least 

In documents of church, if not of state. 

That instant Satan's color went. He leaped 
Upon his feet and drew his blade : " What's this ?" 
Said he ; " What's this," I thought ; I thought I heard 
A laugh suppressed. — But all were mute. — He stood. 
Then Malcham, quick : " Your Hohness must have 
" Mistook. 'Twas but an undertone of full assent." 

O Malcham ! falsest of the false ! " assent !'' 
When every devil scarce could hold his sides 
From split of laughter. But " His Holiness '' 
Was soothed by Malcham's words, and soon resumed 
His seat, and handed then his scribe, who sat 
In front, a scroll, from which he, rising, read 
In hieroglyphics writ, the sum of what 
He wished should be proposed, rejected or 
Received, as wisdom there combined might give 
Its voice. For Satan, though imperious he 
And haughty, ruled with dictatorial sway 
For most, nor brooked advice of highest god 
In HeU, or slightest interferance in 
The acts of his despotic will, yet now, 



60 Satcm Chained, 

Eelaxed, as he perceived a crisis had 

Arrived, e'en deigned to ask the mind and aid 

Of all ; not liberal grown, but conscious of 

His want of skill and strength to meet alone the foe, 

"With whom the times gave warning he must soon 

Contend ; contend, or quit, forever quit 

Perhaps, the field, behttled and disgraced 

In sight of all the damned. Two evils here 

His stubborn autocractic will gave way, 

He chose the least, and called on Hell for aid. 

The scroll, prepared, as read by scribe, thus ran : 
" Whereas, a prophecy went forth, announced 
" In Eden, that the woman's seed should bruise 
" The serpent's head, the beast within whose form 
" Concealed, we drew off man, and foiled our foe : 

" Whereas, portentous signs betoken some 
" Dire harm from him about to fall on Hell : 

" Whereas, a race, from Abram sprung, and grown 
" A nation strong, in Egypt nursed, and now 
" In Araby, in emigrating march 
" To Canaan's better land, in league with him 
" Just now, and strangely fed by manna sent 
" From Heaven, and watered from a fountain rock, 
" At times, that pours out hving springs at call 
" For man and beast ; and strangely sheltered from 
" The burning sun by an extended cloud, 
" Which, luminous by night, shines forth, and lights 
" The camp of Israel, through her hosts, when pitched, 
" And guides them in their march, called sheckena : 

" Whereas, those signs with import not to be 
' Gainsaid seem plainly cent'ring on that race 
" As source from which that harm, whate'er it be, 
" Shall come, though how, or when, or where, we know 



Satan Chained. 61 

" Not : (yet our foe is wily, and may take 
" Us by surprise), by us in conclave joined : 

" Resolved ; as giving full the sense of all 
*' The gods of Hell, that this impending harm 
" Is nothing else than that intended blow 
" In Eden threatened, called the bruising of 
" The head, beyond all hope to crush us : and 

" Resolved again, that from that hated race 
" That seed will come (if let alone) to do 
*' The bruising deed. And here again be it 

" Resolved, that Hell is virtuous, and Heaven 
" Corrupt, coBRUPT ! And further be it here • 

" Resolved again, that Hell is amply worth 
" Preserving ; and that we will never yield ; 
" But to the last withstand him with what means 
" Soever we can ply, of force or guile ; 
" First guile, but failing this, then force ; yes, force ; 
" Hell meeting Heaven in direst battle joined ; 
" Jehovah foiled, mayhap, and Heaven our own. 

" Resolved again, though Heaven in some respects 
" Might be preferred to Hell, yet only when 
" Possessed by us, the chivalry : for 'tis 
" The people makes the place. For who would dwell 
" Of us, high bred, high born, among the tribes 
" Of serviles found in Heaven, on equal terms ? 

" Resolved again : if from defence we should 
" Aggressive prove, (who knows what chance of war 
" Might bring about?) and repossess our Heaven, 
" Then our * pecuHar institutions ' shall 
" Be planted there, and we amended for 
" Our risk, and martial toil ; and lastly be't 

" Resolved, that here we pledge ourselves, whatever 
" May come, to prove us worthy of the Hell 



62 Satan Chained, 

" We rule ; to leave no means untried for our 

" Defence, defence if but no more, or our 

" Advancement should the fates decree. — And if 

" We perish, it shall be at night-fall of 

'• The bloodiest day that gods have ever known.'' 

O, godhke courage ! v^orthy, worthy of 

A better cause. — Though wanting vhtue, yet 

The chivah-y can fight. 

The reading done, 
A move by B'elzebub, preceded by 
A short but cogent speech, was made that these 
Kesolves at'once should be adopted as 
The sense of this august assembly, and 
By Ghemosh seconded ; ' who had at heart 
The weal of all beyond the love of hfe 
Itself.' — The rest sat waiting for the word 
To vote. For none dissented fi'om the ^dews 
Of theu' high chief ; or if dissenting, cared 
Not then to make it known ; but silent sat 
Or caUed aloud for " question ! question ! " to 
Be put, which put, was answered by a loud 
And thundering "aye" in lowest octave of 
Thek devilish throats. 

So much was gained. All Hell 
Had now combined to overthrow the race. 
The chosen race of God. — O Israel! where's 
Thy refuge fi'om the coming s' orm ^ Flee, flee 
To Hni, thy only hope ! as Noah to 
The life-preserving ark. 

Then B'elzebub 
Again arose, and with distinctive voice 
Announced a proposition for the faith 
Of HeU, a dogma in her creed. 'Twas this : 



Satan Chained. 63 

" That our beloved chief, our saintly guide, 

Is, from his wisdom sure infallible." 

There's nothing like a dogma new within 

A creed ; it gives such hfe, such hfe and strength, 

As late th' immaculate conception gave. 

This pleased them all ; but Satan most, who 
Bowed with kingly grace toward B'elzebub, 
His high assent. The same appeared throughout 
The whole assembly. Each, unconscious, with 
A slight, but simultaneous bend, declared 
His full accord. -Twas plain that Hell again 
Would be unanimous. 'Twas put at once 
And carried with a rising vote, not one 
Dissenting, each declaring thus his mind. 
His pubhc mind. What each believed within, 
May not be told ; nor mattered much, for not 
For them did most subscribe their vote, but for 
The common herd without, who soon would find 
It heresy of deepest dye to doubt. 
But B'elzebub believed, believed the whole ; 
A fossil devil of the slowest kind. 

Now Hell had gained new strength. — A dogma to 
Her creed, like magic, would effect, mayhap, 
AVhat arms had failed to do before ; but both 
Combined, success was sure. Proclaim it then, 
Throughout her vast domain ; let all now hear, 
The masses hear, and know what is decreed ; 
And hearing, with impHcit faith believe. 
('Twas once a sentiment, but now defined.) 
Some think this rendered Hell rediculous ; 
Not so the poet sure, for he conceives 
A doo'ma added now and then to creed, 
A stroke, master-stroke of policy. 



64: Satan Chained. 

'Tis thus in Hell, a few, compared, make faith 
For all the rest. 

A momentary pause. 
And Proteus rose, a most unstable god. 
A coat he wore of different colored sides. 
And so contrived that either could be worn 
Without, as suited best the times, or those 
In power. In time of revolution, when 
The masses ruled, and red was all the rage. 
His coat was red ; and none so loud as he 
For people's rights. All kings were tyrants, not 
To be endured. The aristocracy 
Must all succumb and find a level on 
The common plain. " Vox popuh '' was on 
His tongue forever. — But upon reverse. 
When war or fraud had changed the scene, 
And some successful chief had leaped to power. 
Though red with blood and perjured to the soul, 
(As late O, Gaul ! a villian reached the throne) 
And blue had now supplanted red, his coat 
Was blue. With oily tongue he talked of kings. 
And their inherent rights, and went abroad at call 
On embassies, or planned at home to prop 
The recent throne. Now Satan ruled again, 
He was for Satan in the fullest sense. 
And first among the fawning com't, with hope 
Of place and power, to pay him def rence due 
As god supreme ; whose right it was to rule. 

In fact he was the Tallyrand of Hell. 
He rose — his coat was blue, the color of the 
Time — and with a gracious smile and bend 
Of courtier mien towards Satan, spoke with bland 
And flattering words of all the excellencies 



Satan Chained. 65 

Of Satan's rule ; his wisdom, gentleness ; 

His care for all, and last not least, his high 

Integrity. He said not piety, 

But meant it ; for it is in Hell as on 

The earth. It must be told that here, O shame 

The most abandoned villians, if they have 

Bat crowns or miters on their godless heads. 

Are heaped with every sacred adjective 

The language owns, of " holy,'' " pious," and 

" Most Christian," e'en till devils, if not men, 

Are naaseate and hang their heads. — -His high 

Integrity — It was not irony ; 

He was sincere, sincere as courtiers are, 

"Who make a trade of words and sentiments. 

As merchants do of wares, nor care who buys, 

Provided that the price desired is paid. 

This smooth and gracious speech concluded, he 
Desh'ed to read for their approval what 
In haste he had committed to the scroll 
He held in hand, and knew would please them all. 

" Whereas, in times gone by, rebelHon hath, 
" Of direst kind, disturbed our grateful peace, 
" The lower orders rushing from their sphere 
" Assigned by fate, with maddening fury, and 
" With bhndest zeal o'er-sweeping Hell with one 
" Eesistless deluge wide and wasting, and 
" With surge terrific Hfting from their base 
" The firm supports of order, sweeping down 
" The edifice of state, and mingling all 
*' In wildest, deepest wreck," continued he ; 

" Whereas, our chief beloved, permitting first 
" The wave to spend its strength, (what barriers could 
" Withstand such elements combined ?) and then 



6^ Satan Chained. 

" By nicest diplomatic skill, and casual force'' 

(The muse asserts, the blackest perjury.) 

" Obtained at length the throne, thus lost, and now 

" Reseated fii^m in lawful power, vouchsafes 

" Again his former mild propitious rule : 

" Resolved, that we rejoice in such a prince ; 
" And deem his reign most suited to the wants 
" Of Hell. And that we cherish in our souls 
" The most sincere affection for himself, 
" His royal person ; and the warmest wish 
" For his per^^etual, universal sway." 

Apolyon moved, and BaaHm seconded ; 
The question put, a deafening " aye " received 
And placed it in the register of Hell 
Unanimous. — What loyalty and love 
Were thus expressed ! But all was hollow, not 
A devil there but did detest his reign ; 
A devil there, whose bosom was not filled 
With fiercest hate, and would not throttle him 
Y/ith keenest gust, but for the lack of arm, 
Or danger of the deed, or loss of place 
And power for time to come. 'Tis thus from fear 
Or selfishness the thi'one of Hell is propped : 
Not patriotism. Tnis can never grow 
In such a soil. It needs the light of Heaven, 
The genial warmth of better skies, and air 
Of purer breath. Though none so loud as they 
In all God's works, in patriotic show 
Of words, in praising Hell, and ranking it 
Above the Heaven where God presides, and " which," 
Say they, " though lost is not much loss. The chme 
" Enervates, and the luxuries destroy 
" The highest elements of soul, and lead 



Satcm Chained, 67 

" To indolence and loss of noble aims. 

" Not so with us ; our hardy clime, our fare 

" Of coarser kind, nerves up to action, and 

" Evolves a spirit fraught with noble deeds. 

" We envy not their residence, and ease 

" In that voluptuous world. But here in our 

" Beloved Hell we choose to stay, and build 

" An empii'e worthy of our chief, and of 

" Ourselves. And now we pledge our all for this 

" Great end, nor would accept the gift of Heaven, 

" With all its hills and vales and gentler toils 

" And far-famed rich repasts : while here 

" Our wants are met to our desires ; abstemious 

*' 'Tis true, but yet well met ; and we can add 

" Renown to this our cherished home. We lay 

" Upon her altar all we hold most dear, 

" And make the sacrifice for her best good. 

" Nay, would not shrink, if called, to yield up life 

" Itself." Fair words, and spoke with show of zeal, 

Yet hollow ; not a devil there but would 

On offer sell out all he boasts so dear, 

This cherished Hell of his, her vast domain, 

Her millions, future prospects, chiefs and all. 

At once, for one, O faith ! one single mess 

Of Heavenly pottage. — Thus, in Hell ; so loose 

The tie, so starved are all the damned ! 

But one there was must not be overlooked. 
He came, 'tis said, from regions oi the north. 
He had a seat among the rest, and held 
His head as high ; whom all despised ; and yet 
Refused him not, but rather welcomed him 
A place ; not for his worth, but for the work 
He would perform ; such work as would be done 



68 Satan Chained, 

By not another devil of the throng. 

In fact, he was the scavenger of Hell ; 

And ever lived, 'tis said, and moved, to please 

His betters. And 'twas doubtful if had 

A soul. He fawned like Proteus, but he lacked 

His shrewd and inward depth of thought, that planned 

Far reaching some perceived and selfish good. 

His mind was dull. The chivalry at will 

Would wind him round their fingers. Yet he thought 

Himself an equal in their midst, and deemed 

His seat accorded and the bows and smiles 

Vouchsafed, as tokens of the inward worth 

They found in him. — And thus he talked and smiled 

And acted, as a peer among his peers ; 

"When lo ! he was the secret laugh of all. 

Besides, his face was of unusual kind ; 

Not fixed in form — (alas, he knew it not !) 

But soft and plaistic as the clay upon 

The potter's wheel or yielding loaf beneath 

The baker's hand ; and hence his masters had 

But little task in moulding him at will. 

And yet he found rewards for all his acts 
Of menial kind. (Ee wards but not respect.) 
He rose to place, by the appointing power ; 
And once, 'tis said, (for truth of which the muse 
Declines to vouch,) he filled an embassy 
Abroad, and there for three long years disgraced 
E'en Hell. What sad materials compose 
That nether world ! And some such kind are found 
E'en here on earth. 

Next after him arose 
From where he sat in savage thought, and look 
Of desperate deeds, the fiercest, deadliest god 



Satan Chained. 69 

That Hell produced ; and far more cruel he 
Than Moloch ; long, long ^vorshiped here on earth 
In Indian chmes, and Sciva named ; the dread 
Instinct, of infants ; from whose shiieks and dying wail 
His ear di-ank Hellish joy, as from the breast 
They fed the crocodile, or plunged the stream 
Of sacred Ganges to a -wat'ry grave ; 
And painted there with bloody mouth and tongue 
And reptile jaws, fit emblem of the god. 
The widow on the funeral pile was his. 
And deeds besides that make e'en devils blush. 
In stature tall ; his head behind was wide 
And massy, and in front 'twas low and scant, 
And brutish in extreme. His eye was small 
And snaky ; and betokened passion and 
SeK-will to boiling heat, but not a spark 
Of intellectual light. He rose, and held 
His ear for cries, and snuffed the air for blood, 
Bedecked with gewgaws ; and the laugh of all ; 
The god, in fine, of every savage tribe. 
And as he stood, a thrill of dread instinct, 
As from a serpent coiled, bechilled the whole 
Assembly. With assurance bold, " With leave, 
" Your Holiness," said he, " and all these gods, 
" I see, methinks, the surest way to gain 
" The point desired, to bar the dangers deemed 
" About to come from Abram's race. Be mine 
" The task to execute, should you approve 
" The thought. Let's send the plagues, the direst plagues 
" That Hell can boast. Let's send them teeming in 
" The evening dew, and breathing in the winds 
" Of Heaven, and pregnant in the water from 
" The rock, and unsuspected mixed within 



70 Satan Chained. 

" Their daily bread, the Heavenly manna, sent 

" From God, least likely to be deadly in 

" Its use, but which we'll sow with seeds of death, 

" As tares among the wheat. Their babes shall nurse 

" The poison fi^om the mother's breast, and death 

" Shall lie in ambush, lurked in every cup. 

" Thus unperceived, methinks, but sui'e in aim 
" We'll come upon the host not roused to know 
" Their danger till too late. For if they pray 
" Their God will hear and save. We will destroy 
" At once ; or if not that, their intellects 
" Shall be deranged ; and pangs of direst kind 
" Shall seize their frames ; and maddening pains shall drive 
" Them frantic to unearthly deeds. Each hand 
" Shall rise against its neighbor to destroy. 
"The father, red with blood, his son shall slay, 
" The child, the parent, and the mother, from 
" The breast shall dash her babes against the stones ; 
" Or seek their blood, or strangle them with shouts 
" Of maniac joy. Give me but one, one day, 
" With all Hell joined in league, and come to aid 
" When once our plans are laid, and all this race, 
" The boastful care of God, shall be no more ; 
" But blood instead ; and one dehghtful field 
" Of wide-spread^ death. The vulture there shall seek 
" His prey, unscared, among the silent tents. 
" Thus all shall perish ; not a trace of them 
" Shall be preserved, but blotted from the rolls 
" Of earth ; and God abashed, and we avenged 
" For this his eftbrt to disturb our peace." 

He sat, and from his look none doubted that 
He had the will to do what he proposed. 

Then Ashtaroth arose, and with a sneer 



iSatan Chained. 71 

Ljolied out on Sciva ; and extolled to Heaven 

HLis wondrous scheme. " How sure !" and set 

The very day and hour for all to be 

Achieved. And then with smile, and courtly bend, 

He begged him to comply with one request, but one 

Besides, and that " to give a programme of 

" A battle-day to storm the skies and cast 

" Oat God, and seize anew their long-lost Heaven. 

" For him 'twas easy ; since to execute was but to plan." 

This Sciva heard with trembling fi'ame ; but sat. 
All eyes were fastened on him, as he changed 
To fiery red with sudden gathering ire : 
While Ashtaroth, in scalding irony. 
Took sweet revenge for some old grudge that long 
Had rankled in his breast. It was enough. 
The bloody fiend could brook no more ; but sprang 
In fury to his feet, and headlong plunged 
Towards Ashtaroth with tomahawk, and shriek 
That curdled blood. Each drew ; and Hell was in 
A blaze. Sword flashed on sword, eye glai-ed on eye ; 
And direst battle then among the gods 
Seemed imminent. Some leaped for Sciva and 
Withheld his arm, while others shouted for 
An open field, and fair and equal fight. 

But Satan's steel was seen among the rest, 
With Hght terrific, and an arm that none 
Could view unawed, and voice that sent dismay 
To every heart. He called to order, and 
The host complied ; and Sciva sat again ; 
Now pale with rage ; and sworn to be revenged. 

Next Peor rose, with od'rous curly locks, 
And \dsage trim, a soft licentious god. 
He stood in fair proportions to the eye. 



72 Satan Chained, 

And graceful far beyond a spirit lost. 

His ways were winning, and his look serene ; 

His speech was smooth, and seemingly sincere ; 

And guarded well with cautious words, that woa 

At once upon the heart ; and gave no note 

To innocence, of deep design, and dark 

Depravity within. And yet he was 

A whited sepulchre. His blasted soul 

"Was rottenness itself. 'His plans were deep. 

And laid for future use ; and ere aware, 

The fairest angels, tangled in his folds. 

Fell victims ; lost their virtue and their all. 

And in his fall, seduced and won, he dragged 

Them down to hopeless days of shame and pangs 

Unceasing of remorse. The heartless god 

Stood up. All knew his tastes and upmost thoughts. 

And hence his mind was known before he spoke. 

" Send women !" spake the lecherous god. " Let them 
" Be called from every nation to the camp, 
" The sacred camp of Israel ; let them come 
" With songs and dances, and with wanton smiles. 
" And sure these sons of God, when they behold 
<* The daughters fair of men, will laugh to scorn 
" The holy law, proclaimed upon the mount ; 
" And take them wives, not wives ! of all they choose. 
" And God, besure, will straight destroy them, as 
" The world before the flood. We've tried this once 
" Before, with full success ; and only eight 
" Eemained alive of all the peopled earth. 
" If God spared not the world that was, but swept 
" It bare for sin, this sin ; why not this race 
" When sinning to the full in Hght so clear ? 
" If we succeed at all, methinks, it wiU 



Satan Chained. 73 

" By this be done. Let's try the heart of this 
" His people Israel, and end our care. 
" For God is great in anger as in love. 
" And when his ire is roused, his vengeance knows 
" No bounds." To this all bowed assent, for they 
Knew well the wrath unmixed of God. Thus hard 
It is for devils or for men, grown blind 
By sin, to comprehend the ways of God 
To man. His great designs shall in the end 
Succeed. Though sin may hinder, and the day 
Defer, and thousand thousands " die without 
The sight," yet all shall bend at last ; his plans 
Shall triumph, and his foes shall find that e'en 
Their machinations to defeat his will. 
Have served but to defeat themselves ; to dig 
A deeper pib for their more deadly fall ; 
While God unharmed shall still be all-in-all. 
Nay more, his moral problem, solved with full 
Success, shall show him God all-wise, as well 
As God supreme, before admiring worlds. 

" We know," continued he, " their God is strong, 
" And naught can pluck his people from his hands. 
" But they can pluck themselves, and scatter from 
" His fold ; and be devoured as sheep astray 
" Upon the mountains ; nay, he will himself 
" Destroy them ; for 'tis written in his book 
" That all are cursed that fail to keep his law. 
" His curse will fall upon them and destroy. 

" Then make them sin, all sin to such 
" Extent that he will swear an oath that not 
" A soul shall enter in and see the land, 
" The promised land, reserved for Abram's seed. 
" And when the oath is sworn, tis sure j for God 



T4: Satan Chained. 

'' Will keep Ms word in v/rath as well as love. 

" We know this truth, who lost our Heaven, and found 

" This Hell, and we will use it sure upon 

" Our foes. And let them know as well as we, 

" That God will keep his word in anger sworn. 

" Send women then, the fairest of the earth, 
" And draw them off from God. For this will lead 
" To every breach of law ; not one of his 
*' Commands will then be safe ; no longer God 
" Adored, nor Sabbaths kept, nor parents feared, 
" Nor murderous hands restrained, nor thieves unknown, 
" Nor truth be loved, nor covetous desires 
" Eepressed ; but this one sin shall break the mound, 
" And like a flood, o'erwhelming in its course, 
" Shall let all others loose ; and death, disease, . 
*' And lust, and Hell itself, shall reign uncurbed 
" Within the camp ; tiU our great foe with rage 
" And shame shall sweep them from his sight. 

This pleased them all, save those whom jealousy 
Forbade to approve. For some there are in Hell, 
And not a few on earth, who're sure t' oppose 
The wi=:est schemes for public good, because, 
Forsooth, to others, not themselves, the meed 
Of praise will come, of first proposing. And 
AVhatever plans for general weal might seem the best 
That Hell could bring, yet each great chief, corrupt, 
And false, and deep debauched within, would 
Let Hell " slide," and all the state be wrecked, unless 
Some selfish interest of his own could be 
Advanced. — Of course then Peor's plan would meet 
With foes. And so it did. No sooner had 
He sat, than scores of envious devils scrambled for 
The floor, with voices loud, and fiery zeal 



Satan Cliainecl. 75 

That scarce could be restrained. The wildest scene 
Of uproar now prevailed. Each " patriot " claimed 
The right, the prior right, of being heard ; 
"Which was, at length, accorded Eimmon. " He 
" The greatest good of all had nearest to 
" His heart, his own the most remote. For what 
" Was he, or what his weal, provided Hell 
" W^as safe ? His hand upon his breast, he called 
" To witness Erebus, and all the powers 
" Below, that Hell had all his thoughts, and all 
" His love ; and to unceasing days should have 
" His labors and his zeal. Her car should move, 
" Though he and all his hopes were crushed beneath 
" Its wheels." What patriots are in Hell ! And some 
We have on earth of self-same stamp ; who *' serve 
Their country for their country's good ;" and yet 
Forever block the wheels, unless themselves, 
Or their own interests can be first. How cheap 
Professions ! and how rife in earth and Hell ! 
" He doubted not the noble lord just up 
" Had full behef in what he urged ; but still 
" Himself had doubts, and serious doubts, of its 
" Success ; and rather would that naught be tried, 
" Than aught be tried in vain. He hoped that none 
" Would be misled ; but all would wait till some 
" One should advance what all could choose ; and then, 
*' In truth, 'twould be a trial mere, and might 
" Not work the good that they designed. But still 
" He granted that a trial must be made ; 
" For aU results were hid, though fixed in fate ; 
" And none could know them till divined, or brought 
** Matured, by real action into hght." 
Another noble lord upon the left 



76 Satan Chained^ 

" Accorded with the peer last heaixl ;" and one 

Upon the right, and one in front. In fine, 

The foremost peers were clam'rous, though in terms 

Pohte. (Pohteness is an attribute 

Of Hell as well as Heaven, but differs thus : 

The first is hollow, and the last sincere.) 

" Were clam'rous,'' (though the cause was hid from most) 

Lest Peor's plan should be received, and full 

Success should follow. — All the leading peers 

0pj)0se ; and so affected many more, 

That when the vote was put, 'twas lost 

With voice o'erwhelming, and chagrin and rage 

Within of Peor ; who full clear perceived 

The reason why his plan had failed. 

He bit his quiveiing hps, and inward swore 

To blast with might and main, whatever scheme 

Should be advanced ; ^' to blast, come then what would, 

" Though Heh thereby should sink, and evers* hope 

" Be lost, forever lost, his own among 

" The rest." Such, such is HeU ! Though one 

In aim, chief envies chief, and thwarts his com^se ; 

And direst hatred rankling in the breast, 

O'erthrows the wisest counsels ; and betrays 

The hopes of all. Among the wicked, and 

The damned, a bond of concord is a rope 

Of sand. 'Tis wisely so, else earth would have 

No spots of green, no flowers ; but waste and LIc:ik, 

One desert drear would stretch from pole to pole. 

Then Satan rose, himself not free fi'om fear 
Within, that he should act a second part 
In conclave, and thus lose the prestige hoped 
Forever his, of first in council as in war. 
" He hked the plan of Peor, but prefen-ed 



Satan Chained, 77 

" The trial first of one more likely to 

" Effect, he judged, what all desired ; and that 

" Would he propose. Those tribes, you surely note, 

" Are under laws to God ; and men, called priests, 

" Administer tlie laws, and teach them to the host 

" In place of God himself. Now Aaron holds 

" The chief appointed lot. He leads their minds 

" With easy sway, and closer still allies 

" Them to the God of Heaven ; and builds them up 

" In wtue, * virtue ' called ;'' and here a curl 

Of scorn ineffable upon his lip, 

Evinced that virtue had no quarter there 

With him. " What wait we for? Why not at once 

" E'en seize the priesthood, and thus place ourselves 

" 'Twixt God and man, the channels of the law 

" From him to them ? And if the law shall flow 

*' Through us, we'll sure corrupt it in its course, 

" And bring it to their hearts not pure as when 

" It came from God, but mingled with our own 

" Strange waters, as shall seem us good. Let this 

" Be done ; and then, forsooth, we have within 

*' Their camp a foothold nothing can destroy. 

" The priests secured, the teachings first shall be 

" As heretofore, the pure and perfect law 

" Of God. But, in the stillness of the times, 

*• And while men sleep, the tares we'll sow, which shall, 

'• Ere long, produce abundant yield. The priests 

" Shall learn of us, and stealthily, as fall 

" The shadows of an evening sky, shall trench. 

" Upon the law, and step by step, at length, 

" Shall fritter it away ; and, in its stead, 

" Shall place a code replete with man's 

" Device, by us inspired, traditions rife, 



78 Satan Chained. 

" And false pliilosophy imbibed. The plan 

" Of Peor, noble lord, and those besides, 

" Of equal worth, wiU then come in at once, 

'* Harmonious ; and will join to give one grand 

" Kesult ; and make the Tribes our own till time 

" Shall end. We'll see, then, that from them no harm 

*' Shall come ; no hon strong to tear, nor arm 

*' To shake the firm set throne of Hell." — He sat ; 

And instant rose a murmur of applause, 

Like hoarse and distant booming of the sea ; 

"Which loud and louder grew, as ocean tide 

Approaching fi'om afar in mountain wave. 

And goaded on by winds of Heaven through rocks 

And straits and steadfast bars. So swelled this tide 

Of voice subdued, which broke ere long in one 

Amazing shout, that echoed back anon 

From verge of farthest Hell. A smile ensued 

Upon the face of Satan ; and he thought, 

He vainly thought the victory won. Alas ! 

The wicked, both in Hell and earth, insane, 

Forever overrate their strength, nor count 

The cost of conflict with the might of God, 

He smiled. His stern and savage features bent 
For once ; while visions started o'er his mind, 
Of power and glory and revenge to come. 

How vain ! Their house is set on sand ; they toil 
For years, and m a single night find all 
Demohshed, and theii' hopes a wreck. — " But who 
*' Shall win the priests ? Shall Aaron and his sons, 
" Seduced, and Moses, and in fine the house 
'' Of Amram turn fi^om God to us to work 
" Our will ? or shall we move rebelhon in 
" The camp, and raise to power another line, 



Satcm Chained, 

" With better hopes for us ? Our worthy head 
" Must this decide. And then, our leader there, 
" Why not our Chief beloved, whose wisdom, skill, 
" And foresight well compare with His of Heaven ?" 
This Proteus said, the soft fallacious god, 
The flatterer of Hell. He saw it pleased, 
Then moved, forthwith, that " Our beloved chief 
" Kepair to earth, and there, by choice of means 
" As seems him best, bring over, if the thing 
" Can be, the priesthood to the side of Hell/' 

'Twas carried with a thundering aye. And yet 
'Twas doubtful who were there sincere ; or wished 
A fatal snare to spread, unseen, for his 
Detested feet. Yet Proteus was sincere, 
With many more. He propped the powers that be : 
He only changed, when those in power were changed ; 
And sought the good (for selfish ends of course) 
Of each one holding sway. And others were 
Sincere, and wished him all success ; but not 
From love ; the damned can never, never love. 
They hated Satan with unceasing hate, 
But hated Heaven more. And this is all 
The concord HeU can boast ; made only to 
Agree fi'om stress of ckcumstance ; or fear 
From some despotic ann.— Then Satan rose 
With soft imperial words, and thanked them for 
The confidence reposed in him ; and made 
Full promise, on return, to publish his 
Success, the priesthood won, the Tribes secured, 
And all avenged. And then put forth a word, 
By way of counsel, to his "loyal peers." 
" He knew they would be faithful on return 
" To their respective posts ; and see that all 



80 Satan Chained. 

" Was kept as should be, and not onfe be slack 

'• In duty due." And here he slowly drew 

His tnisty sword, that flashed with diamons, from 

A diamond sheath ; his sword, appalling sight ! 

A burnished fiery blade, the terror of the damned, 

And gently laid it on the 'rest in front ; 

A hint significant, to give more weight 

To his paternal words. Thus princes oft 

Betray their doubts of all the loyalty 

And love they boast of in the pubhc breast. 

He then assured them " He would soqu be there 
*•' Among the Tribes, and should his utmost skill 
" Put forth to compass all they wished ; and they 
" Must stand as minute men at call, to come 
" Up singly, or in numbers vast, as need 
" Might be. Perhajos this would decide their fate 
'' At once ; and none must shrink from any post 
" Assigned, however hard ; for though he went 
" Alone, 'twas but to plan unseen, then give 
" The signal for whatever aid might be 
" Desired, from one to numbers such that earth 
" Would reel beneath their feet, and God himself 
" Be taken quite aback at their approach." 

And here he rose in stature, and in rage, 
And uttered words that none but Hell must hear. 

"Tis hard for devils to be calm, whose breasts, 
Abandoned to the darkest deeds, and thoughts 
Of desperate cast, have no restraining grace 
To cm-b them in. 'Tis so for most with men. 
The nearer devils they approach in heart 
And life, the more unbridled are their wills 
And passions fierce. God leaves the wicked oft, 
On earth, an awful sign of what they'll be 



Satan Chained, 81 

Alas ! in time to come ; and Hell is not 
Confined to Hell, but is foreshadowed here. 

Let men beware ; and mend their ways perverse 
Through aid implored, ere all is lost. 

And now, 
The spark of rage once struck, it ran Hke fire 
In fallen stubble. Devil kindled at 
The rage of devil, till one blaze of wild 
And fearful fury swept o'er all. They cursed ; 
They huiied defiance at the skies ; and shrieked 
And shouted and looked upward, filled with spite 
Untold ; now flushed, now pale, then flushed again, 
As passion o'er the current of their veins 
Held sway. — A sudden flash is seen ; and ghastly fear 
And paleness gather in the face of all. 
And Hell is mute. — Another flash. — The pall 
Of death seems setthng down, no more to be 
Withdrawn. What ? Why this sudden, awful pause ? 

Behold yon western sky ! 'Midst mirky glooms, 

A cloud is rising there ; of portent dread ; 

As far as spirit eyes can reach, a cloud, 

A harbinger of God's judicial wrath ; 

A cloud, impenetrably dark, and fringed 

With fire. — A flash. — The cloud still swells, and rolls 

Its dkeful folds upon itself. — A flash — and now 

A sound far off, scarce heard by spirit ears. — 

A flash. — Another sound. — A jar ! the waking bass 

Of God Almighty's voice. — Subdued the assembly sat, 

Benumbed. None silence broke ; an hour of dread 

Suspense ! No usual tempest frowns afar. 

But such as threatens earthquakes, bursting fires, 

And yawning earth ; and e'en disruption of 

The cmst of Hell ; and hurricanes, beside ;- 
6 



82 Satan Chained. 

The like unknown in all God's works, except 
That clime, that torrid, God-forsaken chme. 
The dire phenomenon ! They know the sign ; 
Though ages have elapsed since last beheld ; 
Now seen, the fresh remembrance, fixed as fate, 
Portrays the dreadful day, long gone, when that 
Same scourge swept over Hell, and changed its face, 
And wrecked anew the damned. O, Hell ! Sad, sad 
Abode of spirits lost ! Yet 'twas their choice. 
Forewarned, they heeded not. God proffered life. 
But they refused. They would have sin though death 
Was sure to foUow in the end. They loved, 
'Tis true, the thought of life, but would not pay 
The price. The will was free, unhedged by God's 
Decrees ; and life was free to all. Was tree ! 

O God, thy goodness hath no lack or stain ! 
But justice cries aloud and must be heard. 
And he that treads thy laws beneath his feet, 
Shall find thy threatnings, as thy promise, sure. 

'Tis o'er ! 'tis fixed ! The harvest that they sowed 
They now must reap. 'Tis well if these be all. 
Let worlds beware, that are or may be made. 
For God hath set these forth, example sad. 
That all for times to come may fear, and choose, 
The way of hfe ; nor fall as erst they fell. 
Then cease from sin ; be sure God changeth not ; 
Its wages must be death ere long. Though sweet 
The present draught, the pain, the deadly pang. 
Is sure. — All Hell is withered up. Alas ! 
Theh boasts how vain ! how impotent their threats ! 

Thick folds o'erspread the skies, and fires and glares 
Of direst form. The distant awful w^ar is heard, 
As coming of the flood in days of Cain's 



Satan Chained, 83 

Devoted race ; of mountains falling, and the crash 
Of hills ; while thunder, clap on clap, bestuns 
The ear. — The stroke is nigh. All wait in dire 
Suspense, with visage pale, and nerves unsti-ung ; 
And scan with sinking heart the nearing storm ; 
And dread the smiting of its power. They brace, 
And hold with grappled hands, and grinding jaws, 
And half suspended breath ; and wait the shock. — 

It strikes.— Their canopy, the pride of Mulciber, 
Receives the blast ; and but a moment holds ; 
Then yields, and, stripped to ribbons, vanishes 
From sight, and like a vision leaves the crowd 
All naked to the storm. — Hell groans and reels 
Beneath the blow ; and hail descends amain, 
And lightnings cleave the air in fearful streams, 
And run along the ground, and rend the rocks, 
And plough the earth, and fill with fulgurites 
Immense that arid soil. And bolt on bolt 
Besmites the spirit lost ; and tells him God 
Will not be mocked impune ; nor cease to rule. 

And fires below reply to fires above ; 
And what was sohd ground just now, and fixed. 
The rocky face of Hell's unyielding orb, 
Now, cracked and heaved, rides up in billows like 
The Hquid wave. Now mountains sink ; now rise ; 
Now sink again ; and caverns yawn, of depth 
Unknown, and central fires break forth, and shoot 
In forked spires and fearful sheets beyond 
The reach of spirit eyes. — God's arm is bare. 
He looks from out the cloud in fiery form, 
As on the Egyptian host ; and plagues the damned. 

Now night sets in, such night as only Hell 
Can know, while howls and roars the stoiTQ unchecked 



84: Satan Chained, 

TliroTigliout that wide domain. The direst shapes 

Are seen ; the deadliest shocks are felt ; and winds 

And hail and bolts bepeel the face of Hell ; 

And hmi the spirits like the lightest chaff, 

In fuiy to the clouds ; and fling them far, 

In darkness wi'apped, and lodged on tracts unknown. 

Such night the unblessed passed, who dared defy 
Their God, alas ! aaid measure arms with him. 
A lesson this if devils could but learn. 



Satan diained, 85 



BOOK II 



The night wore off at length. — Such night before 
Was never passed in all God's works. The dawn 
Appears, the dawn of Hell, mid clouds and gloom 
And howhng winds. The tempest still is high. 
But spent its fiercest rage. — The work is done. 
A feature scarce is left, a land- mark of 
The day last gone. — Where sat th' assembly mid 
The pomp of regal state, and, haughty, held 
High council on their future weal, and planned. 
Secure of ultimate success, unawed. 
The overthrow of God's designs, — a lake, 
A sulphurous, stenchy lake is seen. It rolls 
Its sullen tide, ejecting shme and scum 
And pestilential fumes. How changed ! Where now 
That matchless host that threatened war on God ? 
O'erthrovm, and scattered to the winds of Heaven ! 
Where now that gorgeous canopy, out-spread 
By Mulciber, a sight for angel eyes ? 
The throne of Satan where ? and wide plateau ? 
All, all engulfed ; ten thousand fathoms sunk ; 
As Admah, Sodom, and Ziboim, gone ! 

New devils now are seen of ancient type, 
Whose forms for ages of remotest date 
Had lain encrushed witliin the crust of Hell, 
Or deeper still, within her central fires ; 
Now thrown aloft by this eruptive chance 



bu Satan Chained. 

They gain once more the freedom of their hmbs, 

Wiiile myriad others, mid the shocks of that 

Disastrous night, had sunk in pitfalls of 

The gaping ground, which, closed, shall hold them there 

In jaws relentless, till some distant age 

To come, mayhap, in turn, shall set them free. 

But Satan had escaped, and many more ; 
"With life, 'tis true, but bruised and wrenched and torn 
In every hmb. They lay for days forth-cast 
On deserts lone, and mountain tops ; bestunned 
And stupefied, fi-om that resistless blast 
That swept them out Then crawled like idiots prone. 
And gazed, and laughed, and lolled, and Hcked the dast 
Alas, for gods that late in council sat, 
And boasted high of deeds to be achieved ! 
How weak I how low I — Their minds at length restored, 
They gain forthwith their furious passions lost ; 
But now increased to tenfold rage. — ^The strokes 
Of God's chastising rod may biing the good, 
The erring good to humble thoughts, and lead 
Them to review their ways, and mend for time 
To come. But not so devils. They, chastised. 
Become more deadly in their hate ; and change 
Not, save from bad to worse. — Thus Satan with 
His crew, recovered from their lapse of mind. 
Swore double vengence 'gainst the God of Heaven. 
Their words and frenzy earth must never know : 
"VThen they beheld the wreck that God had wrotight, 
And felt the stings his stripes had left behind ; 
Xor thought nor cared how much deserved. 
Revenge, revenge, impenitent, their souls 
Demand- 
But time is precious ; earth req-iires 



Satan Chained, 87 

His care, and Hell must now be left, — to whom ? 

His " faithful lords." O, faithful ! Devils to 

Be trusted ? Never ! And he knew the risk. 

But nothing better could be done. He knew 

What timber Hell produced ; and chose the best, 

The best that could be found, — what best in Hell ? — • 

To make his statesmen of ; and could no more. 

'Tis so on earth. The tyrant knows his tools ; 

Though lifted to the highest seats, and praised 

In documents of state, as " High in worth, 

A blessing siu'e to any reign,'' he eyes 

No less, with greatest care, their every way ; 

Nor feels secure within their power ; detests, 

And uses them, and dreads ; and pines for men 

Of trust. — Thus Satan, could he have a few, 

O ! but a few, of honest devils, whom 

No bribes could move, no selfish ends seduce, 

With whom to leave his vast concerns so dear ; 

And feel secure when far away, that all 

Was safe at home, and faith was kept in Hell ! 

Alas ! an honest devil ! When, or where ? 

As incompatible as heat and cold. 

As light and shade. Ah, vain desire ! He first 

Corrupted them, and then, forsooth, would have 

Them honest. Strange ! Had they been honest they 

Had not been there. Another realm had held 

Them ; other fields and climes had been their range ; 

And other interests claimed their care. 

Yes, yes, an honest devil, when, or where ? 

Had they been honest they had not been there. 

Next day 
He calls his greatest peers around him, and 
With speech parental takes his leave. 'Twas on 



88 Satan Chained^ 

The highest peak of highest mountain range. 

His royal words were few, but full of hope ; 

And bland as breath of summer morn. " Adieu ! '' 

Said he, " till I in triumph come.'' " Adieu,'' 

Said they, " our Prince beloved." Then spreading out 

His wings like sails of battle-ship, with wave 

Of hand, shot off, in downward sweep for sake 

Of speed ; which gained, he rose balloon-hke to 

The upper air. They gazed and gazed ; yet prayed 

In heart, that they might never see his face 

Again ; while still he held his way in course 

Direct, and lessening to the view, at length 

Evanished fi'om theh sight. Alone he sped, 

In ceaseless surge, 'mid outward solitudes 

Of frightful breadth ; a cheerless, blasted soul ! 

A vulture beut on prey. How drear his fhght. 

The muse recordeth not ; what wilds he passed, 

Or angels scarcely shunned ; or voids of space 

He crossed, where God's creating hand is still 

Unknown ; but night primeval reigns alone, — 

The muse recordeth not. At length appeared 

In distant view the nebulse, those flakes of suns outspread 

That God has granted mortals to descry ; 

The outskirts of those distant heavens, whence light 

For ages wings its way ere it can reach 

The searching gaze of nightly sage. These passed. 

The glorious scenes of suns and flaming worlds 

That lit his path, the ursse of the poles, 

Arcturus, Sirius, Lyra, Doneb, and 

The host, that time would fail, though seen before, 

Yet now, as then, unbent his devilish mind, 

And made him half devout. But what avail ? 

A Hiincl depraved rejects the works of God, 



Satan Chained, 89 

Or views them to derange and to destroy. 

He passes these on furious mng, and drives 
Afar through fields of hving hght ; then down 
He plunges by the sun, and grazes 'mong 
The planets, Neptune, Herschel and the rest, 
In slackened speed, and lights upon the earth, 
With gentle touch. An earthquake yet was felt. 
He folds his wings, those devilish engines that 
Had brought him there ; and eager gazes round. 
As eagle eyeing for the helpless fold. 

'Twas on a mount in Araby, from which 
He saw the camp of Israel, stretching out 
In wide proportions to the eye, in hopes 
Of better days, the land of promise, and 
The Seed to come. 'Twas evening ; and the smoke 
Of sacrifice just made, by law enjoined. 
Ascended up before the God of Heaven, 
A savor sweet. And here and there within 
The tents, unseen, was made by pious souls 
A sweeter offering of a humble heart. 

In Korah's tent was bowed a lovely form, 
A rose full blown from childhood's opening bud. 
The rest were walking in the freshning breeze. 
God's spirit rested on her from a child ; 
Had filled her soul, and sweetened all her life. 
A pious mother had the daughter trained ; 
Who saw the promises afar, and bade 
Her hold them with unyielding grasp. She prayed 
For all, for Israel, that " They might be kept 
" Unharmed, and see fuU soon their destined rest ; 
" Her father's house, might that be owned of God, 
" And li^ie a tree by water-brooks refreshed, 
" F. rev9r green in leaf and branch, tower high. 



90 Satan Chmiied. 

" Bear fruifc, and bless all time to come. And O ! 

" O ! haste the day when Shiloh shall appear, 

" The hope of Israel, and the Nation's joy." 

And then with fervent quests that " God would shield 

" Her fi'om the ills of life, and ever be 

" A guard about her path," she offered praise 

With an o'erflowing heart. She ceased, and rose 

From supphant postui'e ; and with face serene 

As summer eve, awaited their return. 

AjTived, the father asks, " My daughter, why, 

" AYhy thus alone ! We missed you not till half 

*' Oui' walk was o'er. Youwe lost the joys, the joys 

" Of eveningtide, the breeze, and settiug sun, 

*' Which glorious sank below the western sky. 

'' You are not iU, I trust ? Then why alone ? " 

" Not ill, my father, nor insensible 
''• To charms of evening walk. But joys are found 
" In solitude at times. Though quite alone, 
" I've not been lonely here." She said it with 
A modest mien, and chastened smile, that showed 
A hmnble heart, and full possession of 
An inner life : an inner life, in reach 
Of all, attained by few, discredited 
By more, unsought by most. " I love to see 
" The works of God ; for sure if these are such, 
" So glorious to the sight, how much more He, 
" The God that made them aU." "What, chHd? but what 
" Is God ? Is not the earth a part of God ? 
" The sun, the moon, the stars and clouds and winds 
" Of Heaven ? all these combined, my child, are God. 
" Apart from these no God exists." " Permit 
*' Me to inquire," rejoined the child, with glow 
Of cheek and kindhng fire of eye, " Can these 



Satan Chained. 91 

" Produce such plagues as Egj^pt saw ? divide 
" The sea, or speak from Sinai's mount, in voice 
" To make earth tremble to its base ? or shower 
" Down manna daily for a starving host ? 
" Or bring forth water fi'om a smitten rock ? 
" Or hang this cloud of mercy o'er om' heads, 
" To cool our sultry days, and cheer our dark 
" And gloomy nights ?" He answered not again, 
But placed his hand upon the silken head 
Of Rachael, youngest one, whose childish glee 
Had filled with life their recent walk, and said, 
" 'Tis time yom- were asleep my child.'' 

An hour 
Passed on. The hour of rest had come, and all 
Was hushed throughout the camp ; save hourly voice 
Of sentinel in watch for outward foes. 
The cloud hung o'er them, with its softened light, 
"Which shielded them by day from burning heats. 
And cooled the blasting breath of desert winds. 
Called Sheckena in Hebrew tongue, forth spread 
Of God, a symbol of his presence to 
The host, and to his church throughout all time 
To come. But one slept not, within his tent. 
'Twas Korah ; whose ambitious mind refused 
The balmy antidote of toil, to man 
Vouchsafed. He tosses wild upon his couch, 
"With features flushed, and heavy beating heart ; 
Whose every throb, distinctly heard, threw up 
The vital current with a rush and roar 
Internal, to the fevered brain. " Must it 
" Be so ?" said he in whisper au lible. 
" Must I and all these mighty, worthy ones 
" Obey ? and learn our duty at the mouth 



92 Satan Chained. 

" Of Amram's sons ? and more, have Mirriam, 

" A woman ! teach us songs and dances for 

" Our festal days ? Why this ? And Amram, who 

" Is he, that these his children should thus wield 

" The rod of church and state ? Enough, methinks, 

" That one, that Moses should possess the rank 

" And power he holds, of Captain of the host ; 

" But he must call a brother to be priest, 

" And, not a brother left, must needs for lack, 

" Appoint a sister to be prophetess, 

^' A woman stepping from her proper sphere ; 

" And thus the offices and honors place 

" Within his father's house." The night wears on, 

While thoughts the like disturb his heated brain. 

He sleeps at length ; and now is Satan's time. 
For he had viewed aloof the restless bed 
Of Korah ; and with practiced eye perceived 
The soil prepared for any 'mount of tares, 
The seed that devils sow. Ah, sown too oft! 

Unseen he stealthily approached the bed. 
In shape of nightly vampire, and with wings 
Outspread, hung o'er his prey, the deadly fiend ! 
And closer setthng down, and closer still, 
Came quite in contact ; and with gentle fan 
Of wings, but dark and ominous, induced 
Continuous sleep ; while direst venom was 
Infused through all the sleeper's soul. What thoughta 
Sprang up ! What dreams were clothed in flesh, and walked 
The earth ! What castles built in empty air ! 
He sees himself the king and priest of God's 
Elected host ; to whom the promises 
Belong ; whose number should the stars outvie ; 
In whom the nations should be blest ; whose power 



Satan Chained, 93 

And rightful swa^^, thought he, should over sweep 

The world ; hiraself the founder of the reign ; 

His kingdom everlasting ; and his heirs 

Perpetual in descent, a line of kings 

And priests unknown in earth before, upheld 

By ancient right, tiU time shall end. He woke. 

And all had vanished. Moses still held sway 

Supreme ; and Aaron, mitered priest, had lost 

No power from this injected dream ; and he 

Was Korah still ; the leader of a house, 

But not of that great host ; now doubly moved 

To compass that great end. " What wait we for ? 

" Why, why not rise at once, in multitude, 

" And holy zeal, and sweep these Amrams out, 

" As chaff before the equinoctial storm ? 

" It shaU, it shall be done. I'll move a plot, 

" And others call as leaders, who shall share 

" With me the honors won. My bosom friends 

" I'll sound upon this scheme, and cautious try 

" Them — Dathan and Abriam. They shall hate 

" The offer first, as worthy of high rank 

" In such a move." 

At length the morning abone. 
The glorious sun now burst the op'ning gates, 
And pierced the misty clouds, that ever hung 
O'er Israel's path ; now rolling through the tents. 
In silver sheen and healthful cooling spray. 
The dews, distilled, lay thick in richest pearls 
And Eden seemed restored to earth again ; 
And hfe awoke throughout the vast encamp. 
And daily tasks, begun, and songs of joy 
And praise, made vocal many a tent. The herds, 
Discharged from nightly watch, spread lowing to 



9 J: Satan Chained, 

The distant plots of grass and foliage green, 

That marked the gush of springs and scanty streams ; 

Eefreshiiig sight ! a God-send in that waste 

Of drouths and burning heats. The dew, dispersed, 

The manna shone beneath, as hoar frost on 

The face of earth ; as coriander seed ; 

A small round thing ; in color, white, in taste^ 

Like wafers made with honey, food for gocls, 

Yet loathed, O shame ! by that ungrateful race. 

But Korah noted not the glorious morn, 
Nor grateful felt for manna showered by night, 
Pei*petual bread for Israel's daily food. 
Far other thoughts his mind had now possessed. 
Ambition goaded, and the gifts of God 
Were trampled under foot. All peace was lost. 
And, 'mid the thousand blessings God had given. 
He was a mariner at sea, bestormed. 
And floating on a single plank. He sought 
For Dathan, whom he found alone within 
His priyate tent, and wi'apped in deepest thought 
For he had seen a dream, of import strange ; 
Of sharing kingdoms, and dividing spoils. 
As Satan had not stayed ; but gone 
From tent to tent ; and hung in influence dire 
O'er many a couch ; had started hopes that ne'er 
Could be attained ; and hidden fires had ht, 
That rivers could not quench. He entered with 
An Eastern bow, and comely grace, and talked 
Awhile of health, and fi'iends, of Egypt, and 
The promised land ; of Moses, Aaron , and 
The general weal. "And why," said Korah, " is ^ 
" This long delay in tents ; and even hfe 
*' Itself worn out in hope deferred ? Our food, 



I 



Satan Chained. 95 

" This everlasting manna ; while the fields 
*' Of Canaan call, and richest fruits invite ? 
" What full contempt upon our heads is pour'd, 
" While we, the race for Canaan's land designed, 
" As boasted by our leaders Avhen we passed 
" The Egyptian bound, delay to seize by force 
" That land, that trembles at our very name, 
" Whose bowels melt within them at the sight.'' 

" 'Tis passing strange ; 'tis folly," Dathan joined, 
For he had restless grown from long restraint, 
" A kingdom waits us, and we linger here ; 
" A land with milk and honey flowing o'er ; 
" And yet we starve on manna, this vile bread. 
" Let those accept it whosoever will, 
" As gifts of God, if God there be ; a God 
" Who keeps his chosen ones in durance vile, 
" In this cursed wilderness, to waste our strength 
" And lives in wand'ring here, and making chests 
" Of gold, and gorgeous tents, and princely robes, 
" To be enjoyed by those who call themselves 
" Our leaders. Yes, let those accept who will, 
" But as for me, I seek a better fare, 
" And better region for my life to come ; 
" Nor be forever held in leading strings 
" By those our chiefs, so called, who false pretend 
" That God — and who is God ? — has bid them say and do.'' 

Then Korah, inward pleased at this response — 
For he perceived a spirit there for him 
To mould at will in his designs, — rejoined ; 
" Our years are wasting as a Summer's day ; 
" And age will come at length, and we shall seek 
"The dust, and leave no trace behind ; unknown, 
''■ Shall perish from the rolls of earth ; and e'en 



96 Satan Chained. 

" Our graves be lost : for if indeed our sons 

"Shall ' enter in,' and hold the promised land, 

" Yet none will e'er return to view the spot, 

" The spot forever lost, where we repose : 

" A life of toil, and an ignoble grave ! 

'■' But here's Abiram. Lo ! he cometh from 

" His tent, in thoughtful mood. * Thrice welcome here 

" But why so thoughtful ? Has some ill befall'n 

" Thyself, or father's house ? or does some care 

" Oppressive weigh thy spirit down ?" " No ill," 

Quoth he, " but I have had a dream, a dream 

" Of double form. Methought I saw on earth 

" An Eden springing up, with flowers profuse, 

" And fruits of richest hue ; the olive, grape, 

" And thousand more, inviting to the taste. 

" The waters sparkled as they leaped in sport 

'• From crystal rocks ; then silent sped away 

" In bowers of hving green. The balmy breeze 

" Up-swept from spicy groves, and filled the sense 

" With odors as of Heaven. The skies serene 

" Gave never threat of storm ; but fleecy clouds 

" With silver sheen enriched the azure arch. 

" J\lid spreading branches of perpetual green, 

"The notes, the richest notes enrapt the ear, 

" From plumage rare ; and this, methought, 

" Was mine ; and at my feet the nations bowed, 

*• As lord of all, and piled their offerings rich 

" From every clime. My soul expanded ; and 

" I touched not earth, but seemed above, and looked 

" E'n downward on the seat of kings, who paid 

" Me homage, with the rest of men ; and while 

" Thus crowned and sceptered and enthroned, methought, 

" The vision waned ; a dimness came o'er all ; 



Satan Chained. 97 

" Till all had yanished quite, and left a void, 

" A desert drear. And then a voice, ' beware !* 

" I heeded not. * Beware ' again ! but still 

" No heed I took. ' Beware !' But all in vain, 

" And then a gulf I saw beneath my feet, 

" Down which I plunged immeasurable depths, 

" To rise no more." " We all have had our dreams. 

Quoth Korah, with assurance doubled now ; 

" 'Tis ominous. Some great event awaits 

" Us. Sure the times are full of meaning ; and 

" E're long the signs shall have their end. 

'^ We must bestir ourselves, or plunge the gulf you saw ; 

" Must rule, or feel the foot of power full soon. 

*' Yes, surely. The fulfillment shall appear. 

" And happy he who stands where fate 

" Invites, to catch th' auspicious hour, and make 

" The prize his own. A kingdom may perchance 

" Be plucked with ease, as comely apple from 

" A hanging bough ; or picked as ruby rare 

" From i-ubbish vile. Let us be present then, 

" For few can win, what all would fain achieve. 

" A scepter has been promised Israel's race ; 

" But who shall bear it never full declared. 

"It may as well be ours as others' lot, 

" For fortune frequent throws her favors blind, 

"' The ready seize them, while the laggards miss. 

" The moment passes never to return," 

And, starting up erect, and drawing near. 
With hand uplift and eyes of flasLing fire, 
" Let's seizi the reins at once," said he, " while ell 
" Is weak ; before these Amrams seat themselves 
" In power ; and laugh us aU to scorn, 'mid tow'rs 
" And walls of adamantine strength. A crown 



06 SatciJi Cualned. 

" Will soon be won, and lost, llie struggle sure 

" Will come. The mighty princes of this host 

" "Will try theii- strength in time ; nor leave 

'' A boon so tempting to us ail, to Hing 

" Itself by chance into the lap of one, 

" Unreached for by the rest These Amrams have 

*' The field 'tis true, but they must battle, or 

" The field be lost ; and, battling, prove themselves 

" More mighty than the rest, or still thp field 

" Be lost. 'Tis worth the toil, 'tis worth the risk, 

" A piize like this must never be contemned ; 

" A people to be numerous as the sand ; 

" A kingdom stretching to the utmost bounds 

" Of earth ; a name, an everlasting race 

" Of kings, and famihes of princes high 

" Iq power." To which Abiram quick repHed : 

" These things are worth our care, I full accord, 

" For Israel shall be mia^htv in. the earth. 

" Before his sway, the nations one by one 

" Shall bend ; the thrones of earth shall cmmable to 

" The dust ; and Israel, — why not we ? be all 

" In ah." Nor Dathan sat unmoved, but felt 

Within the kindling of a fire, a fire 

Unquenchable till quenched in death. " He fain 

" Would stake his all upon this thi'ow ; and reach 

•''' A kiDgdom or his rain find."' Tor he 

Had thoughts that all might not succeed ; as chance 

Of war might foil their wisest schemes ; and yet 

Would not but try. " I'll take my chance with you," 

Said he, " and strike for empire while the times 

*' Invite. The blow shall lift us up as gods 

" On earth, or cast us down as devils sunk 

*•' To Hell ! but naught without some hazard e'er 



I 



Satan Chained. \ 

" Was won." Then Korah, flushed with his design. 

And sanguine of success, enjoined them to 

" Await the silent evening hour, then seek 

" His tent, where further views could be disclosed, 

" And plans of action formed, and made mature." 

" Meanwhile, the lips of each be sealed ; no friend, 

" The nearest friend apprised ; but silent as 

" The foot of death let us proceed, till all 

" Our schemes are laid. But where is On ? Must he 

" Not have a part with us ? A braver man 

" Lives not among our tribes ; nor one more fit 

" For offices of state : nor one to whom 

" A kingdom, should the lot be his, would be 

" A prize more worthy of regard, or who 

" Would wear a crown with better giace. But all 

" Shall have their chance, the kingdom won ; and fate 

" Shall guide the lot within the urn, and make 

" The king. The rest shall win, not crowns, 

" 'Tis true, but titles high, and offices 

'' Of priests and princes near the throne. 

" Let him become aware of our design, 

" He will accord with us ; fear not. His mind 

" Is cast for elevated aims, and deeds 

" Of effort high. Let him be called to meet 

" Us in the eve." They parted ; each to con 

Within himself, and plans devise, and more. 

To sap the virtue of the church of God, 

And turn them from their only hope, to seek 

Their good in man. Work sad ! and oft performed 

Too well ! Behold yon temple proud ! in form. 

And size, most comely, and stupendous, to 

The eye ! Its columns vast were heaved with skill, 

And wond'rous toil. And etone on stone w:.3 liid. 



100 Satan Chai-itd, 

The "^ork of years ; and men grew hoary as 

The bmlding rose. The time and toil how great. 

To build I but to destroy, how qnick the work ! 

A day shall full suffice to cast it down. 

But when demcHshed and bestrown in dust, 

Ah ! who shall build again ? "VTith aching heart 

The ruins we may scan ; and pause and weep ; 

But they are ruins still. 'Tis eyen so 

In morals as in art. A day may waste 

The piety of years : and hence are sprang 

The devastations of our moral world. 

But woe to him who mars the good of earth ! 

A millstone round his neck were better hung, 

And he down-cast to ocean's lowest depths. 

Than draw a single soul away from God. 

Ah I who can tell what mischiefs were achieved 
That day ? what vows were broken, and what sorJ ^ 
Seduced ? Seditious thoughts sprang up \\here tVr 
These evil men had passed. They sowed the seed, 
And ere the sun went down, — so quick the gTOwth, — 
A hai-vest ripo was ready at their hand. 

They meet at eve with highest tide of hope. 
'Twas in Abiram's tent. The rest had gone 
To visit friends hard by ; so planned, that all 
Might still be kept a secret. There they S2:oke 
Of what the day had done ; of hints thrown out, 
That caught like sparks in stubbie ground L.nd swept 
Through half the host : that disaffection was 
Abroad ; the times were calling, and they must 
Obey. They there defied their God ; those men 
Of atheist heart ; and vaioly thought to foil 
His high designs : and God looked down and laughed 
But let them iim theu' length : that iq the end 



Satan Chained. 101 

A warning might be given througli future time. 

From night to night they meet, 'Tvvas now within 
A tent prepared aloof from passing feet. 
They here mature their plans, enroll their host, 
And make all ready for a coup d' etat. 

The morning came at length, the day prescribed. 
And one grand muster startled all the camp. 
Aghast the faithful stood. Sedition is 
On foot ! Distrust and fear fill every breast. 
The stoutest heart grows faint ; and cheeks turn pale. 
And gathering multitude at central point 
Betrays the faithless crew. There princes stand. 
Of high repute, and unsuspected till 
That hour. From tent to tent the terror ran ; 
And wildest uproar spreads amain ; and God 
Frowns awful from the threat'ning cloud, that rolled 
In wrathful folds above the Tent, and scarce 
Eestrain its all-consuming fires. Stood there 
Abiram, Dathan, Korah, joined with On, 
The atheist chiefs, in bold relief, with sword 
And buckler, spear and helmet armed. 
They stood unawed, and marshalled that false host. 
Which to their standard flocked, and with disdain 
Defied the host of God ; blasphemed his name, 
And laughed his law to scorn. Alas ! for all 
The sons of God ! the faithful few, that now 
Eemained, before this mighty rebel host, 
As trembling kids before the lion's rage. 
The hungry lion, roaring for his prey ! 
The rebels stayed not, but impetuous rushed 
"With shouts and hellish rage, in broken ranks, 
To seize the consecrated tent of God, 
And all the treasures there, with those whom God 



102 Satan Chained. 

Had placed as captain of liis iiost, and priest 

Of lioiy tilings. The tumult still increased ; 

And prayers and curses mingled, rise to heayen, 

And shrieks and trampling sound. All, all, combined, 

Bestun the ear, and telL that all is lost ! 

But no : the fiery form of God is seen, 
As never seen before. That cloud ! that cloud ! 
The awful shekena, now fierce in wrath, 
Hangs dreadful in the upper air ; then stoops 
In forked flames and tempest roar quite down 
To earth, and overspreads the Tent. The sight 
Appalhng terror-struck the recreant crew. 
That back recoiled, as ocean waves opposed 
By steadfast rocky base of mountain range, 
Or hasty traveler from the glaring eye 
And naked teeth of deadly lion, crouched 
And waiting in his path. This Godless mass, 
At length, still reeling backward, fall to earth. 

Recovered now, a pause ensued ; a pause, 
A stillness as of death. . As well the friends 
Of God, as foes, stood gazing fearful at 
The sight, the darkling folds and shooting spires 
Of flame, uncertain what the moment might 
Bring forth. The temper now was changed. Instead 
Of slaughter round the tent of God, of heaps 
Of slain, of reeking blades, and gory earth. 
The rule of God o'erthrown, and ruffian rule 
Unchecked, the holy place defiled, the ark 
Itself a prey, and all the treasures seized, 
And vilest passions glutted through the camp, 
A calm, — ^how changed ! — a calm remonstrance feU 
From Korah's lips. " Ye take too much upon 
" You. Every one is holy ; and the rule 



Sata7i Chained. 103 

" Might come to all by choice or lot ; at least 

" To all the princes, who of right should share 

" With you in tui'n the offices of king 

" And priest, usurped till now by you alone. 

" Ye take too much upon you ; wherefore lift 

" Yourselves above the congregation of 

" The Lord ?" Then Moses fell upon his face. 

And worshiped God ; and there besought him to 

Eestrain his wrath. Then rose and with a firm 

Rebuke to Korah and the princes there, 

Announced : " To-morrow shall ye know whom God 

" Hath chos'n for his priest to minister 

" In holy things. This do ; your censers take, 

" With fii-e therein, and incense place thereon, 

•* Then come yourself and all these princes, thus 

" Prepared, before the Lord ; and Aaron shall 

" Be there ; and he whom God shall choose shall be 

" Elect. Ye sons of Levi, hear : You take 

" Too much upon yourselves. To you doth it 

" Appear but small that ye are chosen from 

" The tribes, the sons of Levi all, to stand 

" Before him in his house, to do from day 

" To day the service of the law, before 

" The congregation when convened ? Thus marked, 

" But, not content, the priesthood seek ye too ? 

" This rebel act is not to us, but 'tis 

" Against the Lord ; for Aaron, what is he ? 

" Or Moses what ?" He ceased ; and forthwith sent 

A messenger to call up Dathan and 

Abiram to the tent, to answer for 

This bold rebellious act. For they'd retired 

And sought their tent again. But they, secure 

Of then' own strength, defied him, ruler of 



104 Satan Chained. 

The host. They came not ; but a message sent 

Of highest insult. " Back," said they, " and tell 

" Your leader prince, to make his promise good, 

" Of Canaan to these weary tribes, with which 

" He first seduced us while at ease, to leave 

*' The happy land of Egypt, filled with all 

*' Dehghts, -and for a better promised, to 

" Fore;2fo those present sweets ; a promise made 

" "With ease, but not fulfilled. No longer shall 

" He blind the eyes of this becheated host. 

" He must needs be a prince, though all of us 

" Should die, for which he brought us to this curst, 

" This death fraught wilderness. Fine land ! Are these 

" The vineyards promised ? this the goodly land 

" Of fertile fields foretold, and olive groves ? 

*' Of richly waving grain, and flocks and herds ? 

" Let that be first fulfiUed. Fine land ! Go tell 

" Him, we're our own. We scorn his message and 

" His rule ahke.'' Unrighteous charge ! It was 

The people's sins that shut them out, when erst 

The twelve went up to spy the land. Keturned, 

*' The land was rich,'' said they, " as God had said, 

" A land of milk and honey running down. 

" But ah ! the people were of stature vast ; 

" Too mighty to be overcome by them. 

" Hence all their labor and their care were lost." 

Then all the people raised their voice and wept, 

In unbehef of God's assurance given : 

That they should pass the bounds, and take the land. 

And hence he closed the door ; and sware that they 

Should perish there, and never enter in. 

And now the blame they cast on Moses, and 

Accuse that truest man that earth has seen. 



Satan Chained. 105 

Of want of faith, of reckless wish to rule, 

And selfish ends. He heard in agony 

Of spirit, and prophetic prayed : " Kegard 

" Not thou their offering. ' Selfish ends !' An ass 

" Have I not wrongfully required, nor harmed 

*' Them in the least." To Korah then he said : 

" Be thou and all thy company before 

" The Lord to-morrow. Thou and they shall come, 

" And Aaron. Every one shall have in hand 

" His censer, twice five score and fifty ; one 

" For each revolted prince." He bowed assent, 

Nor spake, but stern retired, resolved to push 

His claim to any test that might be sought ; 

His claim, to be rehnquished never, till 

His hfe should end ; alas, how soon ! Thus men 

Resolve, resolve on wicked deeds, and count 

On length of life to come, when lo ! the call 

Is at the door, the messenger to take 

Them hence to face a righteous God, the Judge 

Of all the earth ! Where now the deeds devised, 

Of wickedness to come ? Unwrought, 'tis true. 

But still the sin remains. 

Now night o'erspreads 
The camp. The cloud had lost its fiery hue, 
And soft, as wont, shed forth its lunar light. 
The air was cooled ; and fresh and spicy breeze 
From distant Oases sprang up, and filled the sense 
With rare delights. The outskirts now 
Were still, the herds at rest, and all was hushed, 
To outward eyes and ears, but deep within. 
Was agony and sore distress. They feared ; 
The faithful feared, the faithless feared ; the first, 
Lest God should sweep them for this daring sin. 



106 Satan Chained, 

As Sodom and Zeboim erst, or as the race 

Before the flood ; the last, lest ih&y should fail 

By some mischance, to reach then- hopes, their hopes 

Of place and power ; but feared not God. They'd lost, 

Those atheist grown, had lost all fear of him. 

In silent wakefulness the milhons lay, 
Excited by the scenes just past and those 
About to come. For on the morrow, who 
Could tell what issues would be tried ? What fates 
Be sealed ? "What tears were shed that night the muse 
Can ne'er record, the tears of pious ones ! 
"What prayers besieged the throne of God, the muse 
Can never tell. 

In Korah's tent a form 
Of manly mould, and ripened years, with step 
Of hasty tread, strode too and fro, in deep 
And agitated thought. The hoar frost had 
But touched his locks. His well developed front 
Betokened intellect ; and lineaments 
Of face showed fixedness of purpose, and 
A mind that might achieve results, untold 
Results of good, if trained to vktue ; but, 
If left to sin, might even wreck the weal 
Of empires. He reviewed in thought the day's 
Proceedings, and had naught to change, or to 
Retract. His course was fixed ; and, " life or death, 
" The trial should be made. And if that cloud 
" Of fire, the pest of all the camp, would but 
" Preserve its place, nor interfere to thwart 
" His high designs, next day should see a change ; 
" A change of rule, a change for Israel's good ; 
" A change that soon should bring them from that waste, 
" A chansfe the Canaanite full soon should feel 



8atan Chained, 107 

" To his dismay, and utter rout, with loss 
" Of all his fertile hills and vales : While they, 
" No longer duped, and held at bay by sad 
" Misrule, and coward councils, should at once 
" Eush in resistless to the promised land ; 
" And seize, and hold to farthest end of time. 
*• The brave make speedy work, and soon enjoy, 
" While cowards linger, and the chance is lost.'' 

'Twas done, 'twas settled, nothing to be changed. 
His mind here rested, and he sought repose. 
And slept till morn ; and rose refreshed : 
But not his household. They had found no rest ; 
But agony. The deadliest fears had held 
Them sleepless from the evening's hour. And tears 
Had coursed their cheeks ; and prayers gone up to Grod. 

They rose bewildered, sad and pale, and gave 
No salutation as they met. A funeral scene ! but looked 
In silence at each others face, as if 
Expectant of some sudden, dreadful ill. 
Which Korah seeing, quick the silence broke. 

" My spouse, my children dear, why sad ?" His spouse ! 
She'd been his bosom friend, from early youth. 
And fresh and fak in days gone by ; still fair, 
Less fresh. The bloom of youth had waned, but rich 
In years matui'e, a mid-day sunshine from 
The blush of morn ; a noble matron of 
A noble house ; of upright heart ; who trained 
Her children in the fear of God. *' Why sad ?" 
He said, mth slight misgiving as the AVords 
Went forth. Then Jochebed, for such her name, 
With Eastern deference her lord addressed. 

" My husband and my lord, ask not why we 



108 Satan Chained^ 

" Ai^e sad, wliile we can not but hold in mind 

" The acts of yesterday ; a bold revolt 

*' Against the rule of God ; a questioning 

" His right to make his rulers of the men 

" He will, and call upon the rest to mind 

" His law as uttered from then- hps : His law, 

" With signs and wonders given, the awful mount 

" With hghtnings crowned, and thunders riven, and smoke 

" And darkling flame ; the quaking earth, 

" And awful trumpet, sounding long and loud, 

" And God Almighty's voice distinctly heard, 

" As never heard before : a scene so di-ead 

" That even Moses trembled ; aiid exclaimed 

" ' I have exceedino- fear.' Is this so soon forofot ? 

" The law thus given, is that so soon contemned ? 

" And shall my lord and spouse be leader in 

" The sin of war on him ? and shall he hope 

" T' escape, with these loved ones, his wrath awaked ? 

" What has been once, be sure may be again. 

" Remember days gone by : how Pharoah warred 

" With him, and where is he ? Go ask the sea 

*' For him and all his host. And them that but 

" Complained at Taberah, the fire of God 

" Consumed, nor ceased till Moses prayed. And them 

" That only lusted for the taste of flesh. 

" (Ungrateful, true, when filled to full deshe,) 

" The plague, that di-eadful scom'ge of God, destroyed; 

" Kibroth-Hatavah, let us not forget ! 

" See Muiam leprous by the stroke of God 
" At Hazeroth, for only words in haste 
" With Aaron uttered in reproach of him 
" '^Tiom God had chosen. And the ten that brought 
" A bad report of Canaan, and induced 



Satan Chained, 109 

" Rebellion in the camp, again the plague 

" Smote down at Paran. And shall we escape, 

" Thyself and all our house, if we provoke 

" His wrath with acts of treason, and a rush 

" For power ? Nay, nay, my lord, such thought 

" Be from the far ; a better mind come o'er 

*' Thee ; and retrace thy steps at once. By all our loves^ 

" By thoughts of children dear, and future hopes 

*' Of rest in Canaan's happy land, at least for them, 

" If not for us, (for we, perhaps, shall fall, 

" As God hath said, in this lone w'ilderness, ) 

" I pray, I do beseech thee, to forbear ; 

" Nor madly risk the censer test ordained, 

" Alas ! for thee this day, and Dathan and 

" Abiram and the princes in that league. 

" Forbear, my lord and spouse, the father of 

" Our sons and daughters. Do not w^aste our house, 

" By illadviaed attempts (to say the least), 

" Against the powers that be, installed by God 

" Himself, by him, be sure, to be sustained. 

*'Unequid contest! how can you succeed? 

" But rather turn ; with penitential tears, 

" And broken heart, implore the mercy that 

" May be vouchsafed before the time is lost, 

" To come no more. Methinks I see the wrath 

" Of God, in store, held back, in mercy held, 

" Till latest moment, that forgiveness may 

" Be sought and found ; and Israel saved the stroke, 

" The awful stroke of an avenging God. 

" Behold yon cloud of fire, where God resides, 
" The shekena, a cloud out-spread for good 
" To Israel, to shield us from the heats 
" Of torrid suns, to light our darksome nights. 



110 Saian Chained. 

" And guide our Tvand'rings in this desert-wild 
" While we obey ; but sinning, let us fear, 
'*' As warned by yesterday, that God ^ill break 
'•' Upon us and consume. Eetract, my spouse, 
" And pray as Aaron prayed at Par an ; and 
'•' Perhaps the wrath of God will stay, and we 
'• Be spared." She ended, pale and tearful, for 
She had but Uttle hope. She knew the man too weU 
A loving husband, kind and gentle sire, 
But loill of iron, and a heart untouched, 
Unsoftened by the grace of God : ui whom 
Ambition reigned above all law. Such, such 
Was Korah. Such he took the field ; but not 
TiU Adah had entreaties tried, in turn. 

She was his fav'rite child, now scarcely grown 
To womanhood ; had seen but eighteen suns 
Of summer hght ; a pious heart, of staid 
Dej)ortment, and of temper mild ; a child 
Of prayer, a conscientious keeper of the law ; 
And cheerful as the lovely houi's of morn ; 
A hving radiance of the hvelong day ; 
With mind and intellectual strength beyond 
Her years ; her mother's image ; and though young, 
Her gTeat support in arduous household cares ; 
A guide to younger ones, a blessing, sure. 

He loved her for her miud, her heart, but most 
Her heart ; for wicked men lack not delight 
In piety at home. They love sincere 
The loveliness it lends to all, though seek 
It not themselves. She'd heard her mother's plea, 
A plea in vain. The hour di'ew nigh when who 
Should stand, who fall, should be revealed. He took 
The censer fi'om its place, and incense put 



Satan Chained. Ill 

Thereon. His hand shook not, his will was seen 
In ev'ry lineament of face. His luins 
He gh'ded up, as soon to leave ; while tears 
Of anguish Howed from every eye, save his. 
His hand on Adah's head he laid. — " My child," 
Said he, " fear not. I'll soon return, if not 
" In triumph, yet in safety come ; and you 
" Shall see that aU your fears were vain." 

She rose then up to plead. — " My father, pray 
" Forgive th' offence, but I must speak. Forbear ! 
" Nor doom thyself and us to perish. See 
" Us here, thy helpless ones, and this our dear, 
" Our faithful mother ; and thyself, revered 
" And prized above all price ; our house in hope 
" Of rest in Canaan's land, our talk, our talk 
" By day, our dreams by night ; now blasted nigh ; 
" Our sun about to set ; a night, a night 
" Of darkness setting in, whose gloom shall hang 
" Upon us till the last of time ; our house 
" No more, our very name, a curse pronounced 
" By all. Can these not move thee? Must thou go 
" As ox to slaughter led ? as bird to snare 
*' Of fowler, nor perceive 'tis for thy life ? 
" Stay ! stay ! " — Her hand convulsive grasping his, 
Her face begushed with tears. — " Nay, stay ! 
" O, be persuaded ! Stay, my father dear ! 
" How can we give thee up? how see thee bleed ? 
" Or, smit with pestilence or plague, behold 
" Thy dying face? or, blasted from the breath 
" Of God, receive thee back, a blackened corse ? 
" And, O ! thy sin ! — forgive me — O, the sin 
" Of him that lifts his hand against his God ! 
" Our father, stay ! our light, our joy, our hope, 



112 Satan Chained,, 

" Our staff! — Poor reeds, bruised, broken ! E'en if spared, 

" The storm shall beat us down. Thy sons behold, 

*' My brothers dear, of tender years ; who, who 

*' Shall guide them, and prepare for hfe ? Be sure, 

" If reft of thee, though spared this stroke, our lives 

" Shall waste away, and, one by one perchance, 

" Yet surely, shall we fall, and find our graves 

" In this lone wild, unblest with Canaan's rest. 

" But shouldst thou stay, perhaps"— " Why all this fear?" 

Replied the desp'rate man, now slightly pale, 

*' These many tears ? Think not that God will smite. 

" We're ten to one in this our noble cause. 

" And God is always on the side of those 

" Who have the greatest strength ; and hence we shall 

*' Prevail ; and e're the sun goes down, rejoice 

" In vict'ry over traitors, won, the rule 

" Secured, and Isr'el saved. Cheer up ; you weep, 

" But you shall laugh ere long." — Then all was stiU. 

A pause ensued ; but tears still flowed, and pale 

And hapless Adah sat again. He held 

The censer, and with half misgiving smile 

Departed to the holy tent ; whereat 

He found in tumult wild the populace, 

Una wed, and clamoring loud and fiery for 

The blood of Moses and of Aaron ; which 

Perceiving, quick he stirred them up to rage 

Of tenfold heat. The princes all were there. 

And censers held, with incense and with fire 

Thereon. 

Meantime there stood on highest peak 
Of Horeb's distant mount, a dusky form, 
With wings about him cast ; what seemed in shape 
A vulture, perched, but of gigantic size. 



Satan Chained, 113 

His presence startled all the birds of Heaven, 

That Bang or sported high, or far below. 

They crept to thickets, or, in clefts of rocks 

Concealed, bestirred them not. There fell besides, 

A sad penumbra, fearful shade, on all 

The region round. The eagle screamed afar, 

The monarch of the skies, whose hoary head 

Had marked the track of ages as they passed ; 

Whose fiery heart had never quailed at foe 

Discried. He screamed, and wheehng fi'om his course, 

Gave this phenomenon the widest berth. 

'Twas Satan ; standing there where God himself 
Had stood ; presumptuous ! Nay, a devil knows 
No awe ; defies the law of God, and treads 
His very paths with impious feet. He stood, 
With eye intent on Israel's camp. His plan 
Was ripe ; the time had come ; the priesthood just 
His own ; and one short hour would make the full 
Transfer from God to him. What hopes sprang up ! 
What -vdsions sweep along ! The priesthood his, 
Eehgion would be his ; and man would then 
Be his, the world at large to end of time. 
And when the seed should come, the seed be his. 
And he in earth and Hell be all in all. 

Salvation should be given to the priests. 
And they shall sell it as a thing in trade ; 
The while be keepers of the keys of Heaven, 
To shut and open, damn and save at will ; 
And men shall thence confess their sins to men 
Instead of God, and find forgiveness at 
A stated price. The priest, above the king. 
Shall rule ; and tread the people down ; a priest 
And king in one, shall do the same ; and earth 
8 



114 Satan Chained. 

Shall drink their blood as early rain. The priest 

Himself shall riot at his ease, secured 

To me by wine, and cloistered women, and 

Debauch. The law of God shall be withheld 

From Yulgar eyes, and used by priests themselves 

To lead astray, and conscience-bind the race 

Of man to me. " Hail happy moment ! This 

Shall be achieved ! " And filled with thoughts like these 

He waved his wings unconscious as he stood. 

As if in act to fly ; his wings, that cast a wide 

And dreadful ^adow over all the mount, 

And down, far down the chffe and vales below. 

Composed again, he stood, and eyed the camp. 
There fiercest tumult reigns. The masses, like 
The sui'ging of the sea, sway to and fro ; 
And every surge brings up a higher tide. 
What can withstand ? The barriers soon must yield, 
And, overswept, be lost beneath the flood. 
And one wide ruin overspread the whole. 

The incense smoke ascends. The shekena 
Displays a flery hue, and fearful roar 
As of devouring flame, not heeded now 
Through passion fierce, that boiled in every vein. 
The voice of God is heard for Moses to 
Depart, and leave the impious crew to death. 
But Moses prostrate prays, as wont, and God 
Forbears again, and tells him : " Let them flee 
Who will, and leave the rest to meet their fate.'* 
And Moses rushes through the crowd, and prays 
Them, " Separate yourselves from out among 
" These wicked men, lest you be swept away 
" With them." Some flee, some stay and clamor 
For his blood. He speeds to Datham's tent and gives 



Satan Chained. 115 

Th' alarm ; Abirams then, and warns his house ; 
And then, to Korah's, praying all to flee. 
But Dathan and Abu-am heard in scorn 
His warning words. Then- Atheist wives delay, 
And httle ones. But Korah's fled. A shout 
Is heard that Moses has escaped. " He's fled 
" The camp ! '' A rush is made to overtake 
His flight ; and Korah's voice is heard above 
The rest, " Pursue ! pursue ! his blood, his blood 
" Shall answer for his base misrule.'' 

He'd gone to warn and save his house. They left 
The Tent. The dogs of war had slipped the leash, 
And furious on the scent of that best man. 
The meekest of the earth, swept through the space 
That led to Korah's tent, he in the van — 

But hush ! a shock is felt— a voice is heard 
Of subterranean thunder — all is still — 
And cheeks grow pale, and passion cools — - 
And lo ! the shekena, unseen till now, 
In darkling, forked flames appals the sight — 
An arm is heaving up the pillars of 
The earth. — Another shock, that mingles earth 
And skies, long, lasting, till the stoutest heart 
Is sick. — Now tears of penitence begin 
To flow, from eyes that never wept before ; 
But all in vain. For God's not mocked. The time 
Is passed ; the judgement now is come. They chose 
Their portion, and it shall be given. — A shock ! 
A shriek ! a wild tumultous shriek ! a shriek 
That earth shall never hear again, till God 
Shall raise the wicked dead. The earth is rent, 
The heaving earth ; her crust is broken to 
The very core ; and headlong down the abyss 



116 Satan Chained. 

Are hurled the recreant crew ; their tents, and goods, 
And what pertained to them ! But Korah saw 
The fearful gape, and turned to flee. How vain ! 
How vain ! The quaking earth divides before 
His feet ; and down the chasm dread he plunged, 
"With frightful groan, to share the common death. 
Another shock — and earth had closed again ; 
Her jaws forever shut upon the slain, 
Till God shall call them to their last account. 
Then earth shall cleave again and give them up, 
What time the graves and sea shall yield their dead. 
When God shall square accounts with Adam's race. 

No trace of them was left ; no signal of 
Their fate, save scars and furrows deep where earth 
Had closed ; and spaces blank where once their tents 
Had stood. 

Behold yon battle-ship, of size 
And form majestic to the eye, with sails 
All set to take the favoring breeze, but wrong 
In course, and near a dangerous reef ; and warned 
And signaled to return without delay, 
While all was safe, and save the precious ship 
And still more precious freight ; but all in vain ; 
And plunging onward still till all is lost. 
One shock — one shriek — one reel — the ship is gone ! 
A blank is left, a momentary whirl. 
To tell the tale. The fleet is stayed, and mute 
The seamen stand, with tearful eye, and mourn 
Their comrads lost. 'Twas so with Israel. Deep 
And still their grief, while awe-struck at the wrath. 
The dreadful wrath of God. At length the eye 
Was turned to where the princes stood before 
The holy tent with censers, filled, in hand. 



Satan Chained, 117 

But they were not. A heap of ashes lay- 
Where each had stood, the censers near. A smoke 
Arose as fi'om the site of Sodom when 
It fell, that told, too plainly told their fate. 
The fire of God had broken forth, and none 
But Aaron spared. Let sinners then beware, 
Nor brave that Power, that waiteth long, but will 
At length avenge. 

'Twas done — 'twas o'er — the camp 
Was eased of its rebellious load ; and law 
And rightful rule restored. 

Now Satan from 
The mount on which he stood, had viewed the whole. 
He saw the tumult and the fierce revolt, 
He heard the cries for blood, with highest hope ; 
And saw the rush for Moses through the camp, 
And scarce retained his footing from delight. 
Anon his visage changed, and hope gave way. 
He looked and looked, his staring eyeballs from 
Then' sockets strained, and now grows deadly pale. 
Such paleness none but devils e'er can show ; 
A death- set visage that despair begets ; 
Despair, a sense that none can feel as they. 

The earth had swallowed aU his hopes ; alas ! 
He rose in agony, and took his flight, away. 
Away ; his cheeks becoursed with scalding tears ; 
Such tears as spuits shed, that spring from hopea^ 
Destroyed, and burning shame. He rested m 
A vale in south-sea isle, collected thought, 
Eeviewed the whole, and sought if hope remained 

At length from his obdurate fate a spark 
He struck, that lit his soul anew. " Let all 
" Arise and slaughter Moses for the day 



118 Satan Chained. 

" Last past. ' He's killed the jDeople of tlie Lord. 

" This thought shall take their souls. Ill raise a fire 

" That shall not stay till every branch of this 

" Detested race shaU be consumed : for God 

" 'Will smite them if they will but sin.'' He's gone. 

And hke electric spark is in the camp 

Again. A shadow fell ; none knew the cause ; 

The day was shortened e're the sun went down. 

He labored tiU the flush of morn, from tent 

To tent, from heart to heart, and furious rage 

Provoked and deadly hate. The sun was up. 

But scarcely up, when, lo ! a tumult rose, 

Like ocean's boiling waves. The masses are 

In aiTQS again, untamed, untameable, 

And fiercely called on Moses for redress. 

*' You've slain the people of the Lord. Tour blood 
" ShaU answer for the deed ; • ' when, lo ! the cloud 
Of fire appeared again, and fearful hung 
Lpon the sacred tent. And God was heard. 
Again, to Moses, and to Aaron : '•' Flee 
" This wicked race, and save yourselves ; for I 
*' Will sweep them from the face of earth.'' But no : 
That man, that had the weal of all at heart ; 
That sought the good of them, and not his own, 
Fled not, a shepherd tme ; but risked his life 
For them, the sheep. He stayed to plead. Both fell 
To earth in suppliant prayer, that God would spare. 
(The plague was smiting then its thousands down.) 
Then Aaron seized a censer where it hung. 
And incense flung thereon and fire, and ran 
"With haste among the dying host. — The plague 
Gave way, from camp to camp, from tent to tent. 
At length, the whole was stayed. But, lo ! before 



Satan Chained. 119 

The atonement came, wliat slaughter had ensued ! 
\\^hat ones were heard ! what loved ones were no more ! 
Alas, for Isr'el that they w^ill not heed ! 
Bat ever sin, and reap the bitter fruit ! 

'Tis so with men, throughout the length of time. 
Though warned, they siu, and risk the wrath to come. 
Twice seven thousand fell, and more, for that 
Day's folly. — (What a breach in Isr'el's camp!) — 
Besides what died in Korah's train. — Let men 
Beware, and think and fear ! 

Then rods were brou^^ht, 
And laid before the Lord, to see whom he 
Would choose, of all the tribes. And Aaron's brought 
Forth buds and blossoms, even ripened fruit 
Of almonds in a single night, while theirs 
Were dry and withered as before. 

Then all 
Perceived that God had chosen Aaron to 
Be priest ; and here forever rested down 
Upon this stable fact. 

The priesthood shall 
Forever run mthin his line, till God 
Shall change it, and induct another, who 
Shall be a priest enduring to the end 
Of time, and not a priest for one, one nation of 
The earth, but priest for all in every land 
And cHme, not bound to years, or hne of birth, 
A priest forever, as Melchizedek. 
And he shall enter through the vail, his fiesh, 
A great High Priest to offer blood, his own, 
That shall atone for sin ; whereof the blood, 
By Aaron shed, was but a type, and had 
No power beyond ; but was a prophecy 



120 Satan Chained, 

Of blood to come, that should redeem the world. 
And he shall stand before the throne, the seat, 
The mercy seat in Heaven ; a faithful priest for all. 
And plead his blood for those who shall believe, — 
A Priest and King. Then, then be changed the law, 
And Gentiles be received on equal terms ; 
And worship be reduced to simple forms ; 
And knowledge shall increase, and fill the earth. 
As ocean waters spread the mighty deep. 

But Satan's hopes were blasted here anew ; 
The priesthood not obtained, and Aaron fixed 
More firmly than before, and Isr'el's race. 
Though scourged full sore for sin, yet not extinct. 
He now departs, and soon is found in Hell. 



END OF BOOK SECOND. 



Satan Chained. 121 



BOOK III 



Now Satan, foiled on earth, had gone to Hell ; 
And sits alone amid his towers ; and broods 
In moody silence o'er his fate. Alas, 
Great fihbuster on the works of God ! 
Like that great fihbuster from the land 
Of Gaul. Both went with highest j^romise of 
Success. Both failed, and, shattered to the huU, 
Returned with prestige gone, and dead with shame. 

Throughout the city first, and then the realm. 
The rumor spread that he had come. But why 
This silent, stealthy creeping in ? Why not 
A triumph held at his approach ; and he 
Received as conquering hero comes ? Alas ! 
This tells the tale, of his defeat. He dared 
Not ask a triumph ; but if asked, it would 
Have been decreed ; decreed in every style 
Of pomp. He needed it full sore, but could 
Not face the ridicule of Hell. So he 
Forbore. But 'tis not always so on eurth. 
A recent fihbuster has arrived 
From tropic climes, to which he boastful went, 
A humble imitator of the last. 
He made a run for life, a desperate run, 
In view of hemp ; and as he ran, he felt, 
Or thought he felt, the fatal noose about 
The spinal column just below his head, 



122 Satan C limned. 

So sure the one was for tiie other raade. 

This quickened pace, and he escaped, with loss 

Of all. Bat, on our shores again, is made 

A hero all at once, is toasted high, 

And carried on the backs of men, or what 

In shape appear like men ; and he receives 

Ic all without a blush, because his soul, 

His stohd soul is lacking in the shame 

That devils have. 

The day had now arrived 
For his report ; for he had telegraphed 
From earth, the day before his desperate rout, 
That *• all was well, and more than well." O, fool ! 
How sanguine Devils are ! and ever cast 
Accounts without their host ; had telegraphed. 
In shortest phrase : " To-morrow night 'tis o'er ; 
" The priesthood ours ; the Tribes secured ; the sons 
" Of Amram slain. — Appoint a day for our 
" Beport ; no more till I arrive." — The day 
"Was set at once, and now had come. And what 
A concourse at the early dawn ! But what 
Eeport could he advance ? What triumphs tell. 
When foul defeat had wound up every scheme ? 

The assembly waited, and he must appear. 
They clapped, they roared, and yelled, and rent the air 
With loud unearthly sounds, and still his feet 
Were slow. He lagged behind the scene, and seemed 
Half stupified : while all was uproar wild, 
From gallery to pit ; and greatest fear 
That all would be demohshed at a stroke, 
From devihsh fuiy raised at his delay. 

At length his fiery temper rose at the 
Insufferable strait in which he found 



Satan Chained, 123 

Himself, though King and Autocrat of all 
The Hells. And now erect he shows his hight 
In full, and with a savage frown upon 
His darkhng brow, and full determined step. 
Walked sullen to the royal seat prepared. 

A load and boisterous clap and shout ensued, 
Of outward welcome, ronning round and round 
The noisy maze of three times three ; which he 
Of course acknowledged in the usual way 
Of bow and shght unbend of features, that 
Displayed, or half displayed the twilight of 
A smile. Then music quick and glorious filled 
The air, with sweetest sounds of instruments. 
In nice accord, and voices, rich as those 
In heavenly bowers. It was the self-same tune 
They gave when he was crowned in Heaven. Alas 1 
How changed ! Then, he resplendent shone in all 
The virtues of the upper world ; and on 
The topmo.st step of God's creation, cast 
His eye o'er all ; and cared for all ; led out 
The myriad hosts, and gave them charge of worlds. 
And suns and constellations wide ; and built 
Them up in moral worth, by word and deed. 
To him a future then was spread, of bliss. 
Of endless years of bliss, and higher flight 
In excellence forever upAvard towards 
The throne of God : Now, wrecked in happiness. 
And hope ; a blasted soul ! depraved, debauched. 
And seeking to destroy the very things 
He once was building up. — O Lucifer ! 
Thou morning star ! how fallen, fallen now ! — 
" It was the selfsame tune," and sung in strains 
As in the days of Heaven. The airs, the chimes, 



124 Satan Chained, 

The symphonies, and solos rich, that for 

The time unbent each devilish mind, and caused 

Each heart to melt ; and drew forth tears from out 

The hardest eyes. The enchanting sounds were heard 

Afar without, and stayed the footsteps of 

The wand'ring damned. Such power has music, e'en 

In Hell. — O music ! gift divine, throughout 

God's works ; the high delight of Heav'n ; and heard 

By angels and archacgels, rapt alike : 

To man, a solace in the storm of hfe ; 

And softener of the heart grov/n hard in sin ; 

And e'en to devils not denied ! the thing, 

The only thing retained, of all the Heaven 

They lost. It ceased ; and Hell returned to Hell 

Again. The bars are shut, forever shut ; 

God's spirit never moves ; and hence reform 

Is never known in that deserted world. 

Whatever cause may act. The day of grace 

Is past. They had their day ; they made their choice ; 

The cup they chose is ever at their lips. 

And must be wholly drained. 

Then Satan rose, 
And with assurance forced, professed to give 
An outhne of his doings, and success. 
" The cause was onward, though with speed less great 
" Than he had hoped. The priesthood nigh was won ; 
" And would have been outright, and all the Tribes 
" Secured, had not the elements and fate, 
(He spoke not once of God, but elements 
And fate,) " his planning thwarted, and thrown back 
" A little his designs. But all was full 
" Of hope ; and time would show that he, their chief, 
" Had gained a foothold that should not be lost ; 



Satan Chained, 125 

" And laid his plans so deep, that all would yet 

" Be theirs." 'Twas thus in generahties 

He spoke. Then drew them off by flatt'ries ; and 

Befogged their minds by fulsome praise, bestowed 

Upon them all, his " trusty ones," his " loved 

Constituents " — for virtues that he knew 

Not one of them possessed. And they believed, 

The most of them beheved his false report, 

As if a filibuster, foiled in his ^^ 

Designs, returned, could speak the truth ; and would 

With honest heart reveal the w^hole. Besides, 

The word of Satan never was the best 

For truth at any time since first he sinned 

In Heaven, as all well knew. And yet, how strange ! 

The most believed. But some there were had doubts, 

And dared their doubts express. This raised a storm. 

Which, fearful scene ! nigh wrecked them all. Enraged, 

The direful fiend upleaped and drew his blade. 

All shuddered, paused, and instant from their hearts 

Beheved. No shadow of a doubt was left ; 

They knew 'twas true. Such sympathy there is, 

*Twixt minds and metals, sentiments and swords. 

'Tis so on earth. Poor Galileo, at 
The sight of steel, grew skeptical, renounced 
His former creed of earth and skies, and swore 
The e^rth stood still. 

The furious chief then sat, 
With sword in sheath, that priceless instrument 
Of priests and kings, the maker of the faith 
And loyalty of Hell, and not a smaU 
Amount of both on earth. The assembly then 
Broke up ; and each departed to his post. 
If then on duty ; and if not, as chance 



126 Satan Chained^ 

Or choice bis footsteps led ; wiili silent lips ; 
But all with inward hale, and some with full 
Contempt of him, the worthless scoundrtl that 
The bcepter swayed, and filled a throne, attained 
By force and fi-aud, but not to merit given ; 
(As thrones on earth were lately held, O Gaul!) 

And Satan left ; but not in private way. 
But in the style of kings ; with officers 
Of state on either hand ; and bowed to by 
Obsequious courtiers, and admu'ed by throngs 
In eager gaze, for his majestic mein, 
And robes and gems of richest dyes and hues. 

'Tis so. And who could think such show 
Concealed within, such sum of rottenness 
And yillany as lay beneath those garbs ? 

Alas ! 'tis so again on earth. " He holds 
" A throne." But this no proof the man has worth. 
Go seek the greatest villain earth can boast, 
The most depraved, debauched, and blood-stained wretch, 
Plunge downward to the lowest depth of hfe. 
The sinks of cities and the mire of earth, 
There find your man ; then upward rise to thrones, 
And seek one there. Then tell me, which more vile, 
More wicked and debased, when stripped of all 
The gild that rank and wealth and state bestow ; 
And judged by rules of everlasting right ? 
(Not all indeed, but such there sometimes are). 

The shadows fell ; and darkness closed around. 
And in a lone retreat, mid palace walls. 
The royal fiend was sitting, deep in thought. 
His forehead leaning on a diamond hilt. 
His thoughts now clothed themselves in words. " And is 
" This all T he sighed, " for this is Heaven lost ; 



Satan Chained. 127 

" And all my former purity and bliss? 

" And my renown through all the woj-ks of God ? 

'• Once lovedj now hated, I a wanderer roam, 

" Out cast from all that's good. I would be first ; 

" And, striving, fell thus low. I won a realm, 

" 'Tis true, but 'tis the realm of Hell. This curs'd 

" Unmanageable crew, that keep not faith, 

" (I kept it not myself,) but full of show 

" Of loyalty, with fakest speech, yet false 

" Within, stand ever on the alert to thwart 

" My plans ; and strike me down with open force ; 

" Or stealing on me unawares, enthrust 

" My spirit with assassin blade ; and leave 

" Me welt'ring from the treach'rous blow. Hell ! 

" For this lost I the realms of bhss? The cup 

" Of hfe, that brimmed forever at my lips, 

" I drank, and drank, and drank again ; now changed, 

" The cup of death is mine ; and to the dregs 

" Must all be drained. "What end, what end shall come, 

" What respite e'en, to this my w^retched lot, 

" My choice? M}^ choice ! What madness seized me in 

" That evil hour, to let slip Heav'n with all 

" Its range ( f joys, and choose this Hell 

" AYiJi all its bitter woes? God's universe 

*' Had not the like before. 'Tis done ! the pricD 

" Is paid, the empire won, I'm first in Hell, 

" But 'tis not worth the cost. Yet I must strive, 

" Forever strive, to keep my place and power. 

" Not outward foes alone, but foes within, 

" Are mine. By day, by night, within my halls, 

" And round my couch, they stand, and wait their time. 

" What days of endless watch ! what nights devoid 

" Of rest ! what never ending cares ! to waste 



128 Satan Chained. 

" My strength, and crush my sphit down 

" O could I rest ! — What rest ? If resting found, 
" My empire would be lost. Those ruffian chiefs 
" Now curbed with iron bit, would rash for power, 
" And one most brave, or false, of aU, would seize, 
" And hold the whole. And then, no rest to me ; 
" But, once dethroned, despoiled of power, I should 
" In dungeon he, and only see the light 
" "When brought forth chained, to feel the tread 
" Of his disdainful foot upon my neck ; or, worse, 
" Be dragged, the gaze and scoff of all, in his 
" Triumphal train, for victory won. So, watch 
" And care must ever be my lot; and hence 
" 'Tis Hell to reign, but would be doubly Hell 
'^ To serve. There is no backward step to peace, 
" No hope ! my fate is fixed, forever fixed ! 
" O ! wretched spirit, wherefore didst thou sin ?" 

He ceased; and sighs broke forth. What sighs ! Such sighs 
As only come from bosoms damned. Seek not 
Their import. Earth can never know what pain, 
What anguish spirits lost endure. And yet. 
Not penitential in the sight of God. 
He'd sinned ; but not so much for that he sighed. 
As sighed because his sin had found him oat. 
And lost him Heaven. 

His plans on earth had failed. 
The priesthood, lost, which he regarded won ; 
A Higher power, he saw, had intervened. 
And now the withering thought remained, with fear 
Ten-fold, the Seed, alas ! should yet despoil 
His power, and wreck him somehow from the reach 
Of hope. This pressed him sore. Dismayed, beset 
On every side, he felt the meshes of 



Satan Chained, 129 

The net in wiaich he'd wound himself. Each surge 
To rend the toils, but bound him more. And all 
But Satan would have sunk subdued, no more 
To strive ; and yielded all for lost. But he, 
The master-spirit once of Heaven, and now 
Of Hell, her proud uncompromising chief. 
Yields not, till yield he must. While Hfe and arm 
Remain, he battles strong. Though vanquished in 
A thousand fields he battles, battles still ; 
And gathers courage from despair. He roused 
Himself from revery of thought, and stood 
Erect, and wiped the spirit tears from off 
His careworn cheeks ; and sternly placed his sword 
Within its sheath, and paced the hall with firm 
Defiant tread ; and head upthrown, as beast 
Inclosed to leap the walls that held him in. 

He left ; and walked abroad, the Autocrat 
Of HeU. And none surmised his tears and sighs 
In secret given. Thus greatness often weeps 
Alone, when joined with sin ; proof sad that show 
Of outward good is not an index sure 
Of peace within. 
9 

END OF BOOE THIBOw 



Satan Chained, 131 



BOOK IV 



Meanwhile the churcli of God 
On earth was safe, though thinned in rank, and hemmed 
On every side ; — the church, a wand'rer in 
The wilderness ; alone ! but fed from Heaven, 
And watered from the rock. The church ! the hope 
Of man ; the stone from out the mountain cut 
Without the aid of hand, that shall in time 
Enlarge, and still enlarge, and fill the earth. 

She journeyed from the fatal spot, the grave 
Of Korah and his host, Makhelath called. 
And after years of disciphne and toil, 
Emerged from out the wilderness, not dead. 
As all her foes had hoped, but young and fresh 
And vigorous ; and pitched upon the plains 
Of Moab ; better far prepared than erst, 
To enter in and take her long sought rest. 

Her tents were spread afar ; a goodly sight ; 
A terror to her foes. And Moab saw. 
And feared. For Arad, where was he ? and where 
The haughty King of Heshbon, Sihon called ? 
And Og of Bashan ? all, o'erthrown, and swept 
From earth ; who dared in battle join with God's 
Elect. And Moab feared, and durst not take 
The field ; but sought enchantments to effect 
His end ; and hence, the prophet, called 
To curse ; to curse whom God had blessed. How vain ! 



132 Satan Chained. 

He came, but warned of God ; and stood upon 
The hights of Moab ; whence he saw the tents 
Of Isr'el spread m goodly sheen. And while 
The altars burned, and all the pnnces and 
The king stood near, announced the truth, 
The appalling truth, "that no enchantment could 
" Prevail ; that God had blessed ; and who should dare 
*' To curse ? that he whose eyes were closed, had seen 
" The vision of Almighty God, entranced, 
" With opened eyes. From rocky tops I see 
" Him, and the hiUs, and he shall dwell done ; 
" And not be reckoned with the tribes of earth. 
" His number who can tell ? as dust his seed 
" Shall be. O ! could I live his life, and die 
" His death!" He blessed ; and blessed alone, from bights 
Of Baal and from. Pisgah's top, and mount 
Of Pe'r that looks to Jeshimon. "He saw 
" His strength, as hon rising on his prey ; 
*' His beauty, as the gardens of the vales 
" By river side ; or aloes, planted by 
" The Lord ; or cedar trees whose roots are laved 
" By ever hving streams. His KING shall come, 
" Above the kings of earth, a Star, a Prince 
" Of Jacob. Moab then shall fah ; and Sheth 
" Shall perish ; Edom be a prey ; and He 
" Shall reign ; and Amalek be blotted from 
" The earth. And lo ! the Kenite, nested in 
" The rock, shall be a captive, borne away 
" By Ashm-, never to return. Alas ! 
" And who shall hve when God doth this ? And then 
*•' Shall Ashur, and shall Eber fail ; (when ships 
" From Chittim come ;) and perish ever from 
" The face of earth." He said, the prophet, and 



Satan Chained. 133 

Returned ; and Balak went his way. A snare 

Was laid for Isr'el ; and he fell to lust 

And idols. And the plagues of God beswept 

The camp, and twice ten thousand slew. 'Twas done ! 

The host was purged ; the sinners slain ; the last 

Of those who had rebelled so oft ; of whom 

'Twas said, that they should never enter in 

And see that rest. And now a race was left, 

Far other than that grov'hng crew that left 

The Egyptian land, — a people young, and strong ; 

And trained to virtue, and obedience ; true 

To God's commands ; a race of higher thoughts 

Than flesh pots, leeks, and all the fare possessed 

In bondage ; and enjoyed, if that can be, 

Beneath the whip, the daily scourge that called 

Them forth to toil ; — a race that ready stood 

To enter in, and take the chance of war. 

At God's command, to give their children rest ; 

And leave a home for them in after times. 

A patriotism here, not seen before 

In Isr'el's ranks : which gave full promise of 

A nation, high in aims and power, in time, 

From them to spring ; a glorious presage this I 

But Moses stiU remained ; though faithful found, 
Yet he must enter not, for one, one sin 
Alone. He smote the rock unbid, and smote 
It twice, at Meribah. A flood poured forth ; 
The thirst was slaked, but God, displeased ; for he 
Was not extolled in Isr'el's sight ; and hence, 
Another should the honor take, and bring 
Them in. And he must tarry there ; and find 
His grave on this side Jordan. Such is sin ; 
Abhorred of God in all alike. Then sin 



134 Satan Chained, 

Xot, mv soni I lest thou come short at last. 
And fail of eest ; but hasten 1 flee at once 
To Him who hath atoned, and vrill forgiye. 

His work was not yet done, and he was spared. 
But Aaron, Miriam, both had sinned in face 
Of ah, and both were gone. Their work was o'er. 
And Eieazer wore the piiestly robes 
That Aaron erst had worn. !^s ow, what remained ? 
The time was full ; the forty years expired ; 
The camp was cleansed ; the land in sight, so long 
To Abram's seed bequeathed. (How faithful God, 
To all his promises I ) The number must 
Be cast, and all prepared ; and then the Eest 
Obtained. The host is written down : and lo ! 
How tme the word of God I Xot one of all 
The names enrolled on Sinai's plain is left : 
(Save two of twelve that went to i>py the land.) 
But all hare perished, swept fi'om out the host 
By death, and plagTies, and fii-es ; fniit sad of their 
EebeUious ways, and unbeheTing heart ! 
A lesson this in after times to those 
Who disbeheve, and disobey. They said 
" Then- httle ones should be a prey, and die 
'• In that lone wilderness." But here they were. 
To manhood grown ; preserved, while they themselves 
"Were dead, who had no faith in God, his word, 
Or power. 

Xow Moses, warned of God, bestows 
His last and fervent charge ; recounts the law. 
Their sins, and blessings, o'er ; and shows them what 
Shall be in after times if they forsake 
Theii' God ; " Cast out and scattered to the ends 
« Of earth ; their lovely Canaan lost ; and they 



Satan Chained. 135 

" Shall dwell in lands unlmown ; their sons no more ; 

" Their daughters fair to others giv'n ; and they 

" Shall mourn their loss ; and long for then- return. 

" Their eye shall look, and look, the live-long day ; 

" And fail : their heart grow sick, and far away, 

" Shall bow themselves to gods of wood, and stone. 

" A wonder shall they be in every land ; 

" A proverb and a by-word there. In thirst 

" And hunger shall they serve ; in nakedness, 

" And wanfc, and sore distress. The plague shall smite 

" Them ; and then- numbers, few, be scattered as 

" The chaff, in ev'ry land on earth. And then, 

*' No ease ! no rest ! but trembling there of heart. 

" And every eye with sorrow shall be full. 

*' Their life, in doubt from day to day, shall hang 

*' Upon a thread. In raorning, they shall pray 

" For night ; at night, shall wish the morning come ; 

" And they shall in the market stand, and there 

'•' Be sold away, till none shall deign to buy : 

" Because they left the Lord theh God, and gave 

" Their hearts to gods of earth." Thus Moses spake 

Inspired ; and warns them to beware, and cleave 

To Him ; and drive the nations out ; and hold 

Their rest, forever theirs if lost not by 

Themselves. Then shows what blessings shall ensue 

If found obedient to God. " The heavens 

" Shall give their timely rain ; the mines then' wealth ; 

" And bursting harvests crown the lab'rers toil. 

" And they, abound in every good, desired, 

" In gold, in flocks, and herds, and wine, and oil. 

" Their multitudes shall be as stars of heaven ; 

" And they be head of all the nations round, 

*' And shall possess the land to end of time. 



1S6 Satan Chained. 

" Then teach your children in the ways of truth ; 

" Eehearse the law, and wonders God hath wrought : 

" When rising up, and sitting dov,-n ; at home, 

" Or in the field ; or joum'ying far away. 

" And write them on thy posts, and on thy gates : 

" That they remember and obey. And thus 

" Preserve the Eest vouchsafed to them ; a land 

" Forever blessed of G-od. Preserve my word 

" Untouched ; add not thereto, nor take therefrom ; 

" Nor worship idols, sun or moon or stars, 

" The host of Heaven ; nor divination use, 

" Nor seek for charmers, as the nation do, 

*•' T' unravel mysteries and things to come ; 

" But know, the Lord shall raise a prophet up, 

" Like me, within your midst, and of your tribes : 

" Such things shall he reveal : and him 

" Shall ye obey. And it shall be, that who 

" Will not that prophet hear, shall be destroyed 

" From out among the people. Take good heed !" 

The time is come at length. The number cast. 
The chai'ges given, and leader named to bring 
Them in, the work is o'er. And Moses now 
Must yield command, and leave the field. But first, 
He shall behold the Promised Land. From top 
Of Pisgah, stretched in length and breadth, he views, 
Enrapt, with vision cleared by power Divine, 
Its lovely hiLs, and vales, and silver sti-eams. 
And gushing s^jnngs ; its forests, fruits, and fields ; 
The future home of his relinquished care : 
Which God had promised long in days elapsed. 
And now would soon fulfill. He died ; and there 
Was buried, by the hand of God. He found 
Another JRe.^t, a better far, for him 



Satan Chained, 137 

Prepared. BKs faithful, God will never leave, 

Be sure. How much they fail on earth of their 

Desires, th' amend shall be in Heaven ; and all 

Be well. Yes, God fails not in his rewards ; 

If failure, 'tis the fault of man. The day 

Had come ; the host must cross that Jordan. Though 

Its tide is high, from harvest rains, and all 

Its banks are 'whelmed, a way shall be prepared 

For God's elect. The priests go forward with 

The ark in charge ; and as their feet in-dip 

The stream, its waves divide, as erst the tide 

On Egyj)t's coast. They stand a heap above, 

A lake outspread at length ; o'erflow the vales 

And all the works of man ; and menace death 

And ruin to the region round : while far 

Below, the waters fail ; surprising sight ! 

And all in wonder gaze ; and cross dry shod. 

And children sport upon the pebbly bed. 

With keen dehght, and dip their hands within 

The crystal wall. They pass the stream, and spread 

Their flowing ranks, with all their flocks and herds ; 

And pitch their tents upon the plains beyond. 

The verdant plains of Jericho ; and there 

The tribes were circumcised ; the feast of God 

Was kept ; the corn of Canaan eat ; and lo ! 

The manna ceased ; no more to fall : save that 

Great Bread that cometh down, whereof the man 

That eats shall never die. O ! haste the time ; 

When all shall eat and live. The nations saw. 

Their hearts within them failed ; for who can stand 

Against the God of Heaven, the God that shakes 

The earth, divides the sea to make a path 

For his redeemed ; and dries the rivers up ? 



138 Satan Chained, 

Their gates were shut ; their walls, their only hope. 
How vain ! What walls can .save ns from the wrath 
Of God ? Their time had come ; their sin was full ; 
'' The Amorite shall be extinct !" A race, 
Another race ensue, more likely to 
Obey the laws of God. And if they fail 
They too shall be expunged ; and lo ! the land, 
The promised land, again be trodden down 
Of Gentiles ; yes, till God shall bring a race, 
A people in ; all circumcised in heart ; 
That shall forever keep his law, and hold 
Their land, to end of time, " the Christian's rest," 
Prefigured by the Canaan then possessed. 

'Tis thus the Lord will purge the earth of sin. 
The nations that forget him shall decline, 
By slow decay, or be o'erthrown at once ; 
While those, more loyal, shall increase in power 
And multitude. And thus the work go on ; 
Supplanting and supplying, till the dark 
And deadly haunts of sin shall be no more ; 
The habitations of the cruel fail ; 
Oppressions cease ; and righteousness at length 
Succeed, and triumph through the earth. Let all 
Beware ! let nations fear ; nor dream them safe. 
Though great in power, amidst their public sins. 
He waiteth long, but will at length arise, 
And scourge ; or sweep the guilty people from 
The earth. Go search the past ; go read 
The tombs and stones of hundred gated Thebes ; 
Or Shinar's plains ; go brood o'er guilty Greece, 
Or still more guilty Eome ; and ask for all 
Their glory and their might. Their days were marked 
With blood. The rankest crimes were crimes of State. 



Satan Chained. lcJ9 

The millions groaned beneath th' oppressor's arm. 

And man became the prey of man. And they 

Are not. It ever shall be so, till men 

Shall heed the righteous laws of God. Beware ! 

Let Albion beware, the sea-girt isle ; 

And "VVesterland beware, our home beloved ! 

Where much is giv'n, sure much shall be required 

Behold our land ! we boasted free ; and yet 
One man of six, one woman out of six, 
One babe of six were late but things in trade ; 
Dispoiled of rights ; without the pale of law ; 
And given over to the will, the fierce 
Ungovernable will mayhap, of some 
Despotic lord. For them no justice held 
The scales, though claimed for all ; O te 1 it not 
In Gath, nor let the sound reach Askelon ! 
No cry was heard in law ; the ear was deaf ; 
Their plea was all in vain ; their groanings reached 
To Heav'n ; their tears bedewed the earth ; the book 
Of knowledge closed ; and e'en God's word, denied : 
The man thus made a brute, for lucre or 
For lust ; and mints of God approved the deed ! ! 
Such saints ! O how of late we've seen cm- sin ! 
And loathed it from our very souls. 

The church 
Is safe ; has entered in ; and stands upon 
The land to Abram giv'n : but s- ill her foes 
Kemain to be subdued. Her trust is all 
In God. His arm alone can be their strength. 
The captain of the host of God is in 
The camp, by Joshua seen, with sword unsheathed. 
To lead the armies on. Tbe walls, so sure 
And firip, of Jericho, are leveled with 



140 Satan Chained, 

A shout ; and Eahab only, who concealed 

The spiee', and all her household, spared, at God's 

Command. The city was accursed, accursed 

From God for all their sins ; nor man, nor beast 

Should live. The site was cleansed by fire, that left 

A blackened heap where palaces had stood, 

And princely halls, the seats of revelry 

And sin. And let none build, none dare to build 

" Those impious walls again ; a curse be on 

" Him. In his elder born he shall begin, 

" And in his youngest son the gates shall rise." 

This Hiel did, in after times ; and lo ! 
The curse was his. Now Ai falls at length, 
And Gibeon lives by wiles. Makedah's cave 
Conceals the flying kings ; and sun and moon 
Stand still at Joshua's command ; and storms 
Arise, and hail-stones sweep amain, and death 
And slaughter reign o'er Gibeon's plains. He falls, 
The Amorite. He melts like snow before 
The sun. At night the kings are slain. What change 
A day has made ! "When God arises who 
Can stand ? The nations vanish as the dew. 
Let them be humble then and keep his law. 

The land, subdued at leogth, is sorted out 
By lot among the Tribes. And now they have 
Their " Rest," as God had said. But will they keep 
It ? Will they cleave to him, and bo a praise, 
A g-ory through the earth, a way-mark to 
The wand'ring lost, an ever-burning light 
To ev'ry gentile tribe ? Ah ! no. The muse 
With tearful eye must meditate their sins ; 
Their lapse from God ; and thraldom to their foes ; 
And, after long forbearance on the part 



Satan Chained. 141 

Of him, their final scattering to the winds 
Of Heaven. Their teai's shall water every soil ; 
Their wand'iings, witness ev'ry clime ; their groans 
ShaU sadden ev'ry breeze : Because they failed 
In their high caihng to a darkened world. 

Their leader gone, and thus restraint removed, 
And ease secured from foes subdued or awed 
To silence by their mighty deeds, there sprung 
At length defection from the law of God. 
The heart grew cold, the stealthy leaven of 
Their pagan foes stiU left, was seen full soon. 
Idolatries came in, and every sin 
The law forbids ; and they were sold to serve 
And cringe as bondmen to some heathen lord. 

At times repentant grown, they cried from out 
The depths ; and God vouchsafed to hear. 
Thek foes were scattered ; they, redeemed. But lo ! 
They sinned again ; uncircumcised in heart, 
Forgot the Lord, and all deliv'rance wrought. 
ITot all. A few were ever found who feared 
The Lord amid that sinful race ; the true. 
The real Abrahamic seed ; the church 
Within a church ; the salt of earth ; to whom 
The promise of a better rest was sure. 
If faithful to the end ; a Heavenly, meant 
For all, but reached by few. O Isr'el ! "V^Tiy 
For ever sliding back, and wrecking all 
Thy hopes ? But yet, the pui-pose high of God 
Shall not be foiled, to bring a Saviour from 
The Hebrew race. Though they may fail of good 
To them ; of good untold ; of blessedness, 
Of earth and Heaven within their reach ; yet they 
Shall be the bearer of the Son-of-God, 



143 Satan Chained. 

A Sayiour to a lost and dying world. 

How sad ! to make thsmselyes but scaffolding 

To build the pile, then cleared away, instead 

Of pillars fixed forever in the house ! 

They have thek choice, to bless the world, to bless 

By good received, and then imparted to 

The ends of earth ; or bless, a beacon-light, 

A warning to the end of time. 

The years 
Sweep on, and judges yield to kings ; who reign 
In righteousness, or sin, as seems them best ; 
And emphes crumble from the foot of time ; 
And nations new arise ; and slowly shape 
The moral face of things for that gi-eat time 
"When earth shall see her Lord. 

Meanwhile, the church 
"Was rocking to and fro, 'midst fearful surge 
Of warring nations as a bark bestormed 
At sea ; now strong, now weak, as right, or sin 
Prevailed ; now great with David, and his son 
Of glorious name, who built the House, and saw 
The shekena appear : and nations bend 
In homage at her feet ; — then broken as 
A rush, and thinned, and far away. She sat 
Alone, in sackcloth clad, by chilly stream 
Of Babylon ; with harp unused, and on 
The willows hung. No song of Zion there 
To cheer her lonely hours ; no heart to sing ; 
But tears instead, and ever longing for 
Her native land. The rod was sore upon 
Her, but she lived. Chastized, and penitent, 
She learned, no more to serve the gods of earth. 
What other sins she had in after times, 



Satan Chained 143 

She had not this. Eeturned, she built the walls 

Anew, and raised the house, less costly, far. 

Nor Ark was there ; nor Cherubim ; and lost, 

The Urim and the Thummim ; yet, be sure 

That this, this house, so far beneath in show, 

Shall be more glorious than the first ; shall see, 

Shall see the great Messiah, come, so long, 

Desired, and yet so long delayed. But, ! 

How weak ! a remnant only saved ; Tribes ten 

Are lost ; forever gone ; their lovely land 

To strangers giv'n ; their wand'rings, who shall trace ? 

Their sorrows, who shall tell ? The Judgment shall 

Eeveal the whole. Till then, a mystery, 

A vail impenetrable shrouds thek fate. 

The years still roll ; events are rip'ning fast ; 
The time draws nigh ; the signs are full, and clear ; 
The nations sheath their SAvords, and hush their jars. 
— The gate of Janus, closed— and silent stand, 
And breathless wait the coming of their King. 

Messiah comes ! A shout rolls round the earth, 
And echoes through the universe of God. 
Within the church his bkth ; of woman made ; 
The Son of God, and destined to redeem 
The world ; a Prophet, Priest and King, to sit 
Forever on his father David's throne. 

The shock went down to Hell ; and spread alarm 
And jarred that orb, that vast, uncompassed orb. 
That God-forsaken orb, where devils dweU. 

END OF BOOK FOURTH. 



Satan Chained^ 145 



BOOK Y. 



Time waited not. A thousand years and more 
Had swept along since Satan, foiled, had slunk 
To Hell, at death of Korah and his crew. 
But Hell meanwhile had not been still. That world, 
Intent on wroDg, can never rest. They'd eyed 
The church of God, as eagles eye the lamb. 
The tender lamb, and wait their moment to 
Devour. The gods of Hell had roamed the earth, 
And conquests m^de, and trophies won ; had turned 
The people from the hving God. But yet 
Had failed in their great end ; and rout and shame 
Had marked their course at last. And all were chafed 
And harrowed to the quick, at thought of what 
They'd promised, and of what performed. And now 
A council must be called for measures new ; 
And each look other in the face, and there 
Give in that all their boasting was but wind. 

And Satan ventured now to give the call ; 

The first since his defeat at Korah slain. 

The gods were humbled. They had tried their skill 

A thousand years, as seemed them best ; at times 

With sanguine promise of success. The Tribes 

"Were at their feet, and angry bolts on high 

Seemed waiting to destroy. Each had his time. 

Bat mostly Peor, Baal, Ashtaroth, 

Astarte, Moloch, Baalberith, and 
10 



146 Satan Chained. 

A host from Egypt come. These all, with more, 
Had had their fields, and failed ; and had their turn 
In coming back to Hell, as Satan did, 
Chagrined, and branded to the soul with shame. 

They skulked, long time in caves ; and daily heard, 
Unseen, the secret mirth, and blistering laugh 
Of devils at their fall. But they must now 
Come forth to meet the call. " A Son is bom, 
A child is given," that spreads dismay throughout 
Their ranks, and augurs aught but good. They meet, 
(Not all the States are called, those near, but not 
Those most remote. ) The cause demands dispatch. 
They mingle \^ith a courteous air, and smile 
Of gi-acious mein, that speaks of harmony 
Supreme. How false ! judge not the wicked by 
Their outward mood ; and that when all is calm. 

Now Satan, seated on his throne again, 
Surrounded by those goodly peers, afresh 
Feels courage lift his soul. " It can not be," 
Thought he, " such wisdom, such angtlic might 
'• Combined, should fail. The cause, though long delayed, 
" Shall yet be mine." He rose, and spoke with hope ; 
With buoy'nt hope ; with confidence ; that roused 
The whole ; and each forgot his shame, and foul 
Defeat. " 'Tis noised," said he, " through earth and Heaven, 
" And echoed down to Hell, the Seed is bom, 
*• The Shiloh come ; the King to rule : whose sway 
" Shall have no bound of space or time ; to whom 
*' The nations all shall bend, and angels of 
" The highest grade in Heaven— yes, let them bend, 
" But never those in Hell ; no, never ! We 
" Acknowledge no supreme beyond our realm ; 
" No rule called higher la,w ; and wo betide 



Satan Chained. 147 

" The Son should he attempt to force it here. 

" But he shall yet be ours, if we combine. 

" (Combine, we must, or sink, forever sink.) 

" For 'tis oiu' strifes, our discords 'mong oiu-selves, 

" That foil our schemes. We toil apart, and thwart 

" Each other's plans, and look with jealous eyes ; 

" And each the selfish honor seeks ; and hence 

" We're weak. At first, we aim aright ; then all 

" Is wrong again. Now B'elzebub lifts up, 

" With might and main, and Ashtaroth pulls down ; 

" And Chemosh forward moves, and Jupiter 

" Holds back, that wise and thundering god. Is this 

" Befitting gods ? So weak and blind ? How wise 

" In times gone by, when erst in Heav'n we dwelt ! 

" Has Hell thus robbed us of our better thoughts, 

'• And higher aims ? For shame ! The angels will 

" Deride us, and avouch that Hell benumbs 

" The intellect ; and strips of fairest gifts 

" The angelic mind ; lets loose in wildest form 

" The storm of passion, rendering each unfit 

'•' For good. We wish to ]3rove them false, and show 

" That Hell is better far than Heaven for all 

" That's lovely deemed. Dismiss, then, jars ; the dome 

" Will never rise of our success. Like those 

" Who built the pile on Shinar's plains, our fate 

" Is sealed. From discords loud and long the work 

*' Must cease ; and we be scattered to the winds 

" Of Heaven. But firm combined in phalanx strong, 

" Ah petty jealousies expunged, and our 

" Great work at heart, in all as one, we shaU 

" Achieve success, that e'en shall frighten earth, 

" And startle Heaven. The Son — mark this — shall yet 

" Be ours, a second Adam called. The first 



14-8- Satan C/iained. 

" At once in toils complete, and nncbmbined, 

" We bound. This second, stronger true, but we, 

" Combined, shall yet o'ercome : and then the field 

" Be ours throughout all time ; for this, observe, 

•' Is man^s last hope. If he saves not, then all 

" Is lost with him. He has no other hope, 

" No refuge left. Then how? Let every god 

" Bethink himself ; and each propose the best 

" His mind conceives : that we in council, of 

" Our wisdom may select the surest means 

" To reach our end. Shall we destroy ? let that 

" Be settled first ; or but seduce, and bring 

*■' Him to our part ? " — " Destroy," said Sciva ; and 

The savage god stood up, impatient for 

The work. " He's but an infant ; let the task 

*' Be mine. I'll straight to earth, and soon report 

" The deed achieved, and all secure." 

Each eye 
Was turned upon him as he stood ; uncouth 
And fiery in his mein, and half a brute. 

" But how ? " said Satan.—'' He's of Bethlehem," 
In quick reply said Sciva. " Let me go. 
" The infants there shall die ; and with them he 
'•Shall meet his fate." "By whom?'' '' By Herod," said 
The god. This pleased them all. They bowed assent 
And voted Sciva master of the field. 
To try his hand. And hope revived. Each face 
Was cheerM. Such a sight in Hell had not 
Been seen before for ages. But how short 
The sunshine to the wicked given, ere clouds 
Ensue, and darken all their sky, and hang 
Forever o'er their fate ! It shall be so 
With these. T'heir joy shall turn to gall ; and they 



Satan Chained, 149 

Again shall learn, if devils e'er can learn, 

There is a higher power, that still shall foil 

Their well laid schemes, and show that he wiU reign. 

Th' assembly o'er, the proud unlifted god, 
With seH-complacent smile, retires from out 
The throng : is soon prepared, and on the wing 
For earth ; with fiery speed and keenest scent 
Of blood ; of infant blood. It nerved his flight. 
And urged him on. O mother, clasp your child ! 
Its time is short. A bird of omen dread 
Is on the wing ; a vulture from the deep. 
He snuffs its hfe, and swift and swifter speeds 
His direful way. In Rama shall a voice 
Be heard ; and tears shall flow, and hearts shall bleed. 
And Eachel shall refuse relief. Her babes 
Ai'e not. He voyaged now as Satan had before ; 
With dne intent, and fierce impetuous wing. 
The track, the same ; the space, the same ; the deep. 
The same ; the awful deep above and deep 
Below ; where stillness reigns, far out from all 
The works of God, save roar and dismal howl 
Of storms and doleful winds, that ever and 
Anon arise, and sweep in tempest high, 
Or dh^est hurricanes, — through all that waste, 
That barren waste ; and fiighten Silence with 
A ghastly fear. For, Silence there holds sway ; 
One hand uplift to hush ; the other on 
Her hps forever sealed. These awful storms, 
Unknown on earth, now crossed his path, and woke 
His fears, and veer'd him from his course afar. 
But instinct led him on ; and scent of death, 
A luckless gift, and brought him safe to earth ; — 
Though shattered as a ship bestormed at sea 



150 Satan Chained. 

With shivered sails and sj^ars, and battered hull — 
And near his fated, fair and helpless prey. 
"What errand for a god I yet such the gods 
Of Hell. He seeks out Herod, and the work 
Begins. O Bethlehem ! what scene was thine ! 
The mothers liee, like doves before the fierce, 
Detennined eagle's grasp. Each bears her babe 
Upon her breast, and flies to cave, and lone 
Eetreat. But all in vain ! The ministers 
Of death pursue, and seek with care ; if foiled, 
In ambush wait till want shall bring them forth ; 
Or wail of infant voice, not full suppressed. 
Shall g-uide their deadly feet. The mother, fierce, 
And mad to desperate deeds, defies them in 
Her lau\ But what avail ? The mffian blade 
No mercy knows ; but strikes her down, and all 
Is o'er. The mother and the babe are wiapped 
In death. Their blood is mingled warm upon 
The cavern's hearth. But yet shaU have a voice^ 
And call down vengeance on the guilty head. 

Another, and another bleeds. From hiU 
To vale, fi'om copse to streamlet's side, the search, 
Pui'sued, its victim finds, which, ruthless dragged 
By mui-derous hands from out the fierce-clenched arma 
Of ghastly, shrieking mother, dashed against 
The stones, or pierced with brutal steel — yields up 
Its tender life. 

God ! why suffered such 
Atrocities on earth ? The strong devour 
The weak ; the guilty hve ; the innocent 
Expire ; O ! why ? The judgment shall declare, 
Shall make it plain. Is it that sin shall write 
Her chapter out, shall solve her problem first, 



Satan Chained, 151 

And grave it on the marble face of time ; 

Then righteousness, brought in, shall write oat hers, 

And solve her problem to a judging world : 

That all may see, and to the end of time 

Declare the grand results, compared ? — Then haste 

The day. The heart is sick, the longing eye 

Grows dim. AVe wait, we fail. 

The slaughter o'er, 
The weeping heard, the deadly god retires, 
Refreshed as from a vernal, morning walk ; 
And telegraphs to Hell, that " all is o'er ; 
** The deed is done ; the Son destroyed ; and HeU 
" Forever safe." This took them by surprise 
So quick, so sure the work. A shout arose, 
And Hell was wild with joy. The dread was gone. 
That gnawed their vitals through, and broke then- rest, 
What little rest that world can give. The fiend, 
Elate, is speedy on the wing ; and flies 
The abyss again, and lands at home full soon 
Among the damned. They crowd around him, and 
Demand the news in full. He scarce replies ; 
Impuffed with pride ; but simply said " 'twas strange 
" No other god could gain success on earth," 
And then retn-ed for rest and due repak 
Of damages, incurred from voyage wide 
And dang'rous. Soon in conclave, duly called 
To hear report, the god explained the whole, 
"With ostentatious air, and ill-judged phrase. 
That half conveyed offence ; and then desired 
A triumph to be given, on day prescribed, 
To him as savior of the land. He sat. 
This Satan deemed " but just '' — from policy, 
That devils might be true. — The day was fixed ; 



152 Satan Chained. 

And great the concourse warned to be on hand ; 

And arches rose, adorned with wise device ; 

And fiery steeds, prepared ; and chaplets gay 

To press the victor's brow. The day arrived ; the day 

Triumphal for the victor god. The lords of Hell 

Appear ; the often baffled lords, to yield 

The palm to Sciva, doubtless due, yet grudged 

Full sore. The stir was great ; the multitude 

Immense, which spread and thickened as the day 

Kolled up. And Sciva's heart beat high. From thence 

Forever should he sit, a god above 

The gods, the savior of the damned : when lo ! 

A voice was heard, an awful voice, that stung 

In every ear. " From Egypt have I called 

" My Son." This struck them dumb, and ghastly pale. 

Their spirits sank amain ; their souls grew sick ; 

And faintness came o'er all. They reeled to faU. 

An earthquake rd,ved throughout that wide domain, 

And cast them down, and ripped the very crust 

Of Hell ; and shattered all their hopes. Yain ! vain 

The efforts to overthrow the plans of God ! 

They strive, the wicked, and forever fail ; 
Yet strive again, not forced, but of their own 
Accord. The stone they labor to the top, 
Recoils, and seeks the vale again. 
And still they toil it up, and still it seeks 
Again the vale. It ever will be so. 

But none so much dismayed and stunned at this 
Announcement as the inflated Sciva. All 
His hopes were dead, of eminence among 
His peers ; and he reduced to what he was 
Before, a savage, half-respected god : 
Nay, worse, the laugh of Hell. 'Twas on him now. 



Satan Chained, 153 

For though they felt full sore the dreadful truth, 

" The Son still lives,'' recovered fi-om the first 

Appalling shock, they half rejoiced, as freed 

From everlasting insolence and pain 

Of Sciva's pride. They laughed, at length, and clapped, 

And tore the very ground on which they stood. 

And Sciva heard with shame and crimson spite. 

Not daring to avenge, he fled the throng 

With speedy wing. Another shout, and still 

Another rose, as he escaped. He heard 

The roar behind ; and far beyond the verge 

Of horizontal sky, he sought retreat 

In some secluded nook ; and, found at length, 

He fled again their haunting, devilish shrieks : 

Till far fi'om Hell, he 'scaped to earth, and thence, 

The bitter god, he roamed the isles ; but chief 

In Indian chme, the direst scourge ; and there 

Demanded infants as his daily due. 

O Ganges ! goodly stream, but sacred to 
The dread, exacting fiend ; what thousands hast 
Thou slain ; whose lovely forms and tender limbs 
Have wasted in the slime upon thy bed. 
Or fed the direful crockodile within 
Thy w^ave ! The time shall come, be patient, earth, 
When he shall scourge no more ; but when 
The Son in plenitude shall reign, and pm'ge 
The earth, the long, long suflfering earth. — O day ! 
RoJl on thy speedy orb, and bring the much 
Desu-ed, the glorious morn. 

" From Egypt have 
" I called my Son.'' The Son appeared again ; 
A Gahlean now ; in stature grew, 
And favor both of God and man ; a child, 



164: Satan Chained, 

A holy cliild, and Jesus called ; a name 

To save the people from theu' sins ; — a youth 

Without one fault, one blemish in his life ; 

His daily walk, affectionate and kind ; 

Of temper mild ; of rarest wisdom full ; 

A wonderment on earth. — To manhood grown. 

The same ; but firm in teaching, and the cause 

Of truth. The Pharisee and Scribe, corrupt. 

And proud, and selfish, heard with lip of seorn, 

And inward spite. His stern rebukes upstirred 

Their inmost gall : while all who sought for peace 

And righteousness, hung ravished on his wordSj 

And drank them in as living waters to 

A thu'sty, dying soul. The poor were his. 

The halt, the bhnd, and e en the leper, and 

The vile, the penitent, returning vile ; 

And all the sick, fi'om babes to hoary years. 

These came, these sought, and found relief. He took 
Their sicknesses and bare their pains ; and called 
The erring fi'om their wand'rings home. — He shunned 
The ways of state, and sought the humble roof 
As his abode. His simple truths fell on 
The ear of waiting souls like dew ; and still 
Majestic rose in life and power, that shamed 
The lifeless scribe, and waked his wrath. No pomp ! 
No state ! a meek, a lowly heart, a friend 
Of all, of publicans and sinners, sent 
To gather in, and save the wand'ring sheep 
Of Isr'el's race ; nay, nay, of other folds. 
The sheep, astray, of all the world. — So long 
Desired, the reign has now begun, of peace 
And righteousness throughout the world. This, this 
The prophet saw ; whose eye, unvailed, looked down 



Satan Chained, 155 

The yista long of coming years ; *' begun ! " 
It shall not fail. The culminating day 
Is sure. His people shall be one, and fill 
The earth. And Ephr'im's envy rise no more, 
And Juda cease to vex. The wolf and lamb 
Shall lie in peace, the leopard and the kid ; 
The fatling and the lion, join ; and asps 
And adders be the sport of infant hands. 

The sons of Africa no more shall bleed, 
And Russ and Gaul no more in combat join ; 
Nor Albion's thunder fright the distant isles ; 
Nor armies sweep o'er India's eden plains ; 
Nor race nor caste a barrier be to love ; 
Nor ocean groan with armaments and death ; 
Nor China's gates be closed against the world ; 
Nor Japan isles be sealed, and bar approach 
"With jealous battlements, and frowning guns. 

These all shall be among the things that were ; 
And works of peace shall crown the happy year, 
The jubilee of earth. 

Then science, bright. 
Shall shine ; and knowledge shall increase ; and art 
Shall rise, to bless the earth. Man's greatest toil 
Shall cease ; the harnessed elements shall break 
The sod, shall sow, shall till, shall reap the fields, 
And gather into bams ; and e'en the beast 
Shall find his rest, and be partaker of 
The joy. The wastes of earth shall be redeemed ; 
And lovely harvests wave o'er bogs and fens, 
That now steam up with poisonous breath, and load 
The air with dire disease. Our race shall swell, 
And spread from shore to shore ; from isle to isle ; 
Till every nook shall have its man ; shall yield 



156 Satan Chained. 

Its fruit ; and earth throughout her wide domain 

Shall hold her billions, and shall flourish as 

The garden of the Lord. Sahara too 

Shall shine in green, an oasis become, 

Redeemed by duct of Nile, mayhap, and art 

And science joined, and waters, springing from 

Her arid soil, fi-om their imprisoned depths 

Below, — who knows ?— and made the happy home 

Of man. Such, such the sequel sure of wars 

And human jars subdued, and vice extinct. 

And love and righteousness triumphant on 

The earth. 'Twill come. But long the contest first 

Twixt light and shade, twixt true and false. 

And years by thousands shall elapse ere it 

Be done. 

No T Satan, come to earth, like pard 
In ambush for its pre}^, belurked the Son 
Of man where'er he went, with hope not dead, 
That he might still be snared, or slain outright. 
He found him in the wilderness alone. 
And there assayed to draw him off from God. 
Then on the temple's peak, in sport he fain 
Would have him leap the dizzy hight. Mayhap 
The stones below would crush his hated hfe. 

He failed, retired, but not from out the field. 
The struggle shall not cease, e'en after hope 
Is dead. The garden next he seeks, and there 
The Son of Man besets, in struggle fierce 
And desp'rate. Close the contact ; spirit foul 
With spirit pure. A sufferingf indeed. 
Alone the Son appeared, but spirit eyes 
Discerned the whole, withheld from human sight : 
Saw Satan hang, like deadly serpent on 



Satan Chained. 157 

A virgin's chest, and writhe him round and rounci 

His sacred hmbs, as if forsaken of 

His God. Amazed they saw, and wondered as 

They gazed. 'Twas then that he was bruised, for our 

Offence. Hjs soul was sorrowful to death ; 

And while the strong and loathsome fiend held grasp, 

The blood, astart, came oozing fi'om his flesh, 

And fell in sweat-drops to the pitying earth. 

He sought relief, and to his brethren came ; 

But what could they ? Ah ! who could ease that pain ? 

The sin, the sin of worlds, and ages long, 

Was summed in that dread hour, in all its weight. 

He then returned, and agonized again ; 

And cried, " O Father ! let the cup go by, 

" But yet thy will be done." Again, again. 

He prayed, and said the same, and he was heard. 

That moment Satan fled ; and angels flew 

To his relief, withheld before, they knew not why. 

O man ! forget it not ; it was for thee, 

That pain was felt, that bruising done. 

Still, Satan sought his life ; and used the priests, 
Corrupt, for his design. They clamored for 
His blood ; and stirred the people up to join 
In the demand ; and feeble Pilate quailed 
Before their voice. Though warned, he gave him to 
Their will ; and he was bound, and scourged, and spit 
Upon, and mocked, and led to Golgotha, 
A place of skuUs, and there was crucified ! 

Now Satan's hope was brimming up. He had 
Prevailed ; and telegraphed to Hell to that 
Effect. " The Son, so late the dread of aU, 
" Is now o'er come, his kingdom not set up, 
" But is in dying pangs upon a cross, 



158 Satan Chained* 

" With thief and robber.'' Then a shout arose 
That shook the firmament of Hell ; and hved, 
And rolled, and rolled throughout her wide domain. 

A weight again had ris'n from their souls, 
That, like a mountain-incubus, had crushed 
Them down. They ran, they flew, they laughed, they beat 
The suff 'ring air with deyilish wings ; and hurled 
The arid soil in whirlwinds to the clouds. 

Ah ! httle thought they that the death of him. 
So much their joy just now, would prove ere long 
The death of them ; that death was in the plan, 
The programme of redemption of the race 
Of man. They erred, as devils always do, 
And wicked men. 

He hangs upon the cross ; 
The Son of God. The sun looks down amazed. 
And vails his face ; and distant suns withhold 
Then' hght ; and darkness hangs in fearful shade 
Through all the vast unmeasured universe 
Of God ! " I thirst," he cried ; — and, soon again, 
*' 'Tis finished ! '' — and he yielded up his life. 

The earth is shaken to her very core. 
The mountain rocks are rent ; and other orbs 
Receive the shock ; and trembling spreads from world . 
To world, in sympathy with earth. But who 
Can tell what ruin swept through Hell ? 
That orb was rocked with direst throes ; 
Its mountains leaped from off their seats, and sought 
With headlong plunge, the vales ; and devil, dashed 
On devil, ghastly pale, and helpless, strowed 
The ground : and Satan's head was bruised ; a wound 
Forever to remain ! 

^ " 'Tis finished ! " all 



Sata7i Chained, 159 

The types are dead ; tlie sacrifices, o'er ; 

The Aaronic priesthood, gone ; the hohest place, 

Unvailed ; the middle wall, struck down ; the Jew 

And Gentile, one. The priesthood changed, the law 

Itself is changed ; and hfe vouchsafed 

To man on better grounds. A sepulchre 

The lifeless body holds ; is sealed with care, 

And guarded by a Roman band. How vain I 

The thu'd day dawns ; an angel from the skies 

Descends, mth hghtning visage and with robes 

Of white ; terrific scene ! The keepers fall 

As dead. He backward rolls the stone, and sits 

Thereon ; while Jesus leaves his tomb and walks 

Abroad ; the first fruits now of them that sleep ; 

An earnest of the harvest of the grave, 

The great in-gath'ring of a day to come. 

He takes his hfe again, a proof in full. 
Blest pl'oof ! that man's redemption is achieved. 

He closes up his work on earth ; a cloud 
Receives him up to Heaven ; where now he sits 
At God's right hand, the Great High Priest, foreshown 
By Aaron's line ; appearing with his own 
Shed blood, for us ; a Mediator there, 
'Twixt God and man ; " a priest forever " to 
Espouse our cause ; who knows our ills and pains, 
And feebleness of frame ; and can be moved 
To pity, and can save to uttermost 
The sinful sons of men who come to God 
By him. The Church, cut loose from rites and forms, 
Is ready, now, to spread throughout the world ; 
Without the lumber of the Jewish law ; 
With simple worship, fitted to all states 
Of men, all chmes of earth ; the lich, the poor, 



160 Satan Chained. 

The bond, the free, the high, the low ; or 'neath 
The torrid sun of middle zone, or skies 
Of milder air ; or 'mid the arctic snows, 
And ice, eternal, of the poles. All now 
Can rear their altars in their huts of mud 
And straw, or palaces of ivory 
And gold ; and there, in spirit and in truth, 
(3an worship God. Blest, blest deliv'rance from 
The Jewish yoke ; which they could never bear ! 

Alas for Satan ! He has failed again ; 
And failed when he was certain of success. 
And this besides, a wound is on his head. 
Which shall forever show ; shall tell his shame, 
How much soe'er he may desire to hide ; 
And devils, through all time, shall look and laugh ; 
Shall inward laugh, and joy at his chagrin. 

And can he show himself , again in HeU ? 
And show his wounded head ? He stays on earth \ 
He stays, in hopes to yet retrieve his loss, 
And gain his prestige, gone, by vict'ries won. 

He roams Judea like a rav'ning wolf ; 
And eyes the scattered lambs of Jesus' fold ; 
And waits the favored moment to devour ; 
And gathers hope, forlorn, again. — Thought he, 
" The shepherd safe, the sheep, may they not yet 
Be mine ? " The sheep, how thin the flock ! how weak ! 
And who shall shield them from their deadly foe ? 

A promise had been left, of foreign aid, 
A spirit coming from on high, which should 
Indue with light to know, and vigor to 
"Withstand direct assault. It came ; 'twas on 
The day of Pentecost. A sound was heard, 
A rushing sound of mighty winds, that shook 



Satan Chained, 161 

The house from roof to sill ; and then was felt 
An inspiration never known before. 

'Tis done ; the promise is fulfilled ; the strength 
And light arrived, to last to end of time ; 
A promise to all flesh that shall obey 
The Lord. 'Twas this the prophet saw. 
" In after times,'' saith God, " my spirit will 
" I pour upon all flesh, your daughters and 
*' Your sons shall prophesy, your aged men 
" Shall dream, the younger, visions see." Then spake 
The ministers of Jesus, as the pow'r. 
Infused, gave utt'rance, in the tongues of earth. 
To them unknown before. And tongues of fire, 
"With double flame, amazing sight ! sat on the 
Apostles' heads ; and thousands saw, and heard, 
And turned to God. The Elamite was there, 
The Jew, the Parthian, the Mede, and those 
Of Rome ; and men, devout, from every wind 
Of Heaven. The Church had now received her strength, 
And each could view unmoved the mightiest foe. 

And Satan was again alarmed ; and hope 

Nigh fled. " It must be stayed, this tide of life 

" And truth ; or 'twill o'ersweep the world. 

" The ruler must be called, the priest invoked, 

" The scribe and pharisee, and all must join, 

" Or all is lost." He stirred them up to fierce 

And deadly rage. But all in vain. The threat 

Of council, or the sight of chains, or dark 

And loathsome dungeon, nay, of death itself, 

Deterred not. " Jesus " was the theme of all, 

" The RssuiiEECTioN and the life." 
11 

END OF BOOK FIFTH. 



Satan Chained, 163 



BOOK VI 



And now 
Sprung war in Hell ; such war that hostile realm 
Had never known before. The effort was, 
To rid themselves of Satan and his power ; 
His power, that chafed and galled each devil 
High and low. The elements had been at work 
A thousand years and more ; conspiracies 
Been planned, assassinations dire, and all 
"Were waiting but the favored time. The plots 
Now ripe, and he so far away, and in 
Contempt for failures won, a rush was made ; 
And Hell was in a blaze. The chiefs were out 
The tocsin sounded from the towers in peals 
Of awful tone. The masses gathered like 
A sea ; and, fi-antic, swayed resistless through 
The wide campaign. Conservatives grew pale ; 
And direst hcence raged, and hate and lust. 

And Satan's strongest holds fell one be one 
By force or treach'ry overcome. A few 
Were faithful ; not for love to him, but for 
The fare they had, and scope for every lust. 

The strictest watch was kejpt ; none dared escape 
To earth and bear the news. But Satan soon 
Surmised the whole. Suspicious ever, and 
Forever on his guard, as tyrants must 



164 Satan Chained, 

Needs be, lie read the wliole from one small fact, 

'Twas this : he'd telegraphed to Hell for aid. 

The telegram was short and clear : " The priest 

" Is ours — the work, begun — the prisons, full. — 

*' One martyr's dead — a learned zealous Jew 

" Is making havoc of the church. — They flee 

" For life. — Send thousand thousand devils up 

" To earth." — None came ! He saw his power was broke; 

And rose with swiftest wing, and left for Hell. 

Arrived upon her coasts, he scanned the scene, 
Unviewed, aloft, in middle air, above 
The clouds ; perceived his holds, or most of them 
In other hands, and wildest anarchy 
Afloat. The object first, had been attained, 
To crush the ruhng power ; 'twas next, to build 
Another up. Herculean task ! 'mid chiefs 
Corrupt. A thousand devils claimed the right 
To rule ; and each his faction had, and sought 
By plots of darkest dye, the others to 
O'er throw ; and bound to him by ties as strong 
As ties among such can be, whomso'er 
He could, by bribes then given ; and promises 
Of good to come, (though never to be kept.) 

Each slandered every other chief ; and spread 
The vilest falsehoods. Needless this, for all 
Were bad enough. The simple truth was all 
The slander they deserved. The pit of Hell 
Has pohticians not unhke to those 
On earth. The good can cast off tyranny, 
And settle government with ease, but not 
The bad. Ambition foils their every plan ; 
And envy blocks the course of every good. 

'Twas so with these. Each faction grew in strength, 



Satan Chained^ 165 

And spirit fierce, from week to week, from day 
To day. — 'Twas clear, that soon the clash of arms 
Would ring through Hell. Not one could dare dechne. 
But all must take some part, or be the prey 
Of all. State sad of Hell, and of times so 
On earth. The work went ou, and all took sides, 
For " Blue,''' or " Red." Disputes ran high ; and all 
Was ripening for a bloody field, now near. 

And Satan held himself aloof ; and saw 
With high delight the drift of things, most sure 
In progress for himself. The like is found 
On earth. The tyrant, once dethroned, retires. 
And bides his time ; while discords reign, and wear 
The masses down, till weak ; then strikes the blow, 
And takes the crown again, an easy prize ; 
Or else, corrupts, and stealthily slips in, 
And gains his end. 

Thus Satan from his seat, 
Among the clouds, looks down, with joy, and sees. 
At length, what he'd expected and desired, 
The Red, and Blue, with rancor fierce, long drawn 
In battle-show, and eager stand. He sees, 
At last, the fight begin ; and carnage reign ; 
And spirits fall. And noise and dust ascend. 
And stun his ear, and choke his vision up. 

The solid ground gives way ; and trembles like 
An aspen leaf, beneath such deadly strife. 
What engines pour amain their globes of death, 
On either side ! Sliaft answers shaft, lance lance. 
And bolt replies to bolt. The day wears out, 
A day forever to be marked. What heaps 
Of spirits lie, as far as eye can reach, 
Bestunned, and maimed, and rent, and torn, and stabbed ! 



166 Satan Chained. 

The battle scale is turned. The Bed prevails ; 
The Blue is worsted ; and, in broken ranks. 
Escape the field ; nor stop till far away 
From fierce avenging foe. The Red is all 
In all. Now Hell will be content, and rest 
Forever on a stable base. — Ah, no ! 
The Red divides again on "White and Green ; 
And battles rage again ; as Albion drenched 
Her soil for years about the color of 
A rose. 'Tis sure. The waste of war fast wears 
•Them out. And now, the foiled, in hot revenge 
Look out for Satan to espouse their cause, 
And wreak their mahce on their victor foes 
Thus much for oaths in Hell, for all had sworn. 
From freest choice, and hearty will, whate'er 
Betide, forever to oppose his claims ; 
That tyrant's, who had trod them down, and drawn 
Their blood, and wrenched their very vitals out. 
But spite, not faith, is paramount in Hell. 

There is a desert, far away, among 
The wilds of Hell ; in length and breadth 
Beyond the vision keen of spirit e^^es ; 
A barren of the barrens of that world. 
Dread sohtude ! infested with disease. 
And direst ills. The plague is there, such plague 
As spirits dread ; and fiery serpents, clad 
"With wings, which stealthy glide in midnight shade. 
Or noonday's murky hour, and dart upon 
The unsuspecting spirit, wand'ring, or 
At rest, and leave the deadliest stings behinri 
Then slip, ere apprehended, from his reach, 
And seek another soul, and thrust their sting ; 
A region ever dreaded by the damned ; 



Satan Chained, 167 

Untrod by them, except from outward cause 

Of force or fear. 'Twas here the vanquished hosts 

Had sought retreat, m desperate flight from foes ; 

And, day by day, the numbers thicken, till 

That tritct contains its billions, scattered far 

And near, of every grade, from chief of rank 

To low plebeian caste ; begashed with wounds, 

And broken with despair. They wander here. 

Their only safe retreat. For on the bounds 

Of that Sahara tract are outposts of 

Their foes, whose sentinels keep watch, to seize 

And crucify whatever spirit has 

The madness to adventure out. Thus hemmed, 

And galled ^dth inward ills, and pressed 

By outward foes, then- minds are ready for 

Some master-chief, who could combine their strength, 

And lead them forth to glut theh' vengeance on 

Their haughty foes. But who ? A multitude 

Of broken chiefs they had, within then' midst ; 

But none pre-eminent in might and skill, 

To whom the rest would yield. And now, e'en here. 

The cm'se of faction is at work again ; 

And plots are rife, and war will range ere long 

Among this vanquished crew. In truth, that is 

Indigenous in Hell. And from that world 

Was first imported into earth. And men 

Whose taste is war, are mostly Httle else 

Than devils clothed in flesh. You ask me " who, 

" Or where T Come, walk with me to regions of 

The West. Behold that simple tribe, vdth wives 

And babes, encamped upon an eminence. 

They hear the tramp of civil feet, and see 

The deadly gun and glittering steel : 



1(3 S Satan Chained. 

And woman's cheek grows pale, and infants 

Seek their mothers' breast, with bursting hearts. 

A " talk" is asked, and granted. O the faith ! 

The civil yillain is but gaining time ; 

And falls upon their unsuspecting rear, 

And, treacherous, pours their blood hke water on 

The earth, their wild barbarian blood ; yet, in 

The sight of God, as precious as the blood 

Of civil man. And he has answered not, 

(O shame! O shame to Christian name,) for his 

Misdeeds ; but e'en is high at court among 

The powers that be. He lives, he breaths. 

As yet, the brave unhung ! The time desired 

By Satan now is ripe. He hghts unseen 

Upon the Death-waste tract ; and cautious views ; 

Then shps within a cave ; and waits what more, 

Or chance or tact may bring to light. He walks 

Abroad, disguised ; and hears what may be heard, 

And sees what may be seen ; and in his walks 

Finds Ashtaroth, and sounds his mind ; and fain 

Would know, " what could be done to 'scape that tract 

" Of death, and end their exile ; far more dread 

** And ignominious than the hateful reign 

f ' Of Satan. Better far to have a brave 

" And mighty chief, a king, an emperor, 

" If e'en severe, and with him live, and rule, 

" Than die, forever die, out cast from all, 

" In this curst tract of Hell." (The bruise upon 

His head, which must needs show, he feigned he had 

Keceived in recent fight.) He vowed, '• he wished 

" That Satan, hated as he was, might soon 

" Appear, and take command, and lead them 'gainst 

" Their foes : fqr he was brave, though wicked, mid. 



Satan Chained.. , Wd 

" Whatever else, would make Hell great ; and that 

" Would sure atone for his despotic sway. 

" W^hat great deplore, that he can not be called !" 

He said no more ; but Ashtaroth was won. 
A time was set when they should meet again ; 
And both should go, and make what proselytes 
They could, and bring report. " But first, how could 
" They reach the ear of Satan should the plan 
" Succeed ? To telegraph to earth could not 
" Be done, as all was in the hands of foes, 
" W^hose watch was sleepless, and the shghtest hint 
" Would bring an avalanche of death upon 
" Them all. And O that fate !" (not Providence, 
But fate,) "would bring him on." They separate. 
And both have now a work on hand ; and each 
Pursues his course alone. And Satan soon 
Alights on Sciva, savage god, whose tastes 
Were war, yet stealthy war, and, with his crew 
Of like, most hideous in their yells when joined 
In fight ; but, faced by firm battalion, quick 
Dismayed and put to rout. Him Satan won, 
As Ashtaroth, before ; and sent to find 
His savage warriors, scattered far and wide. 

Another and another still he wins. 
And these win others ; and the infection spreads 
For Satan like the plague. They soon begin 
To cast inquiring looks to earth, and wish 
Some lucky chance might bring him near. 

He comes not ; and their days hang heavy on 
Their hands. They hope 'gainst hope, that he wih yet 
Appear, and lead them thence. At lenc'th, surprised, 
They hear a noise in upper air ; and feel 
A whirlwind, as of force of multitude of 



170 , Satan Chained. 

Of wings ; and cast their eyes aloft, and spy 
A cloud of spirits, hovering o'er ; and in 
Then' midst, with unmistaken sign, the wide 
Spread wings of Satan. These he'd mustered fron 
The earth ; and left that field to try his chance 
Again in Hell. The churches then had rest 
Through all the land ; and walking in the fear 
Of God, and comfort of the Holy Ghost, 
Were multiphed, and built up strong in grace. 
O ! happy for the church, when devils fight 
Among themselves, and draw their forces off 
From earth, to other fields of strife. These all 
Descend, and near the center of this waste 
Erect the standard of their chief, that waved, 
A meteor broad, and swept the clouds ; but not 
Descried at farthest bounds ; or else the alarm 
Would spread that he had come ; and battle might 
Ensue too soon. A handful now, and yet, 
The largest hosts of earth were handfulls to 
This few. A long and streaming pennon waved, 
And signified the want of men as used 
By shipmen here on earth ; which, seen afar, 
Was heeded by the wandering lost, who turn 
Their footsteps to that beacon-goal. And soon 
'J'hey reach the camp, and swell the tide 
Of spirit life ; a crowd, a sea at length ; 
A multitude, that human thought could ne'er 
Conceive. These join the ranks, as urged of late 
By emissaries, sent to bring them o'er 
To Satan's part ; and make a host to dread 
Ynth any leader, buu, with Satan at 
Their head, the great Napoleon of Hell, 
It seemed invincible. And yet the strength 



Satan Chained, 171 

Of Hell was on tlie other side ; and, but 
For discords, sprung from envy, hate, and lust 
Of rule, impairing wisest councils, and 
Bedamping zeal, he must needs fail ; nor reach 
Again, forever, his imperial throne. 

Meantime the rumor got afloat, by spies. 
Or traitors borne, that Satan had arrived ;. 
And was in force upon the Death-waste, and 
AVould soon emerge, and strike for empire lost. 

They knew his power, his arts, his tact in war. 
The wildest agitation reigned throughout 
That world. O ! could the scattered elements 
Combine, and each seditious chief but yield 
To one ; and all, in unison of heart 
And hand, receive the foe, then Satan's hopes 
Were vain ; and they were safe. But no ! the xdlL 
The stubborn xdll of each unholy soul. 
Forbade. The common danger drove them to 
Adhere awhile, and Jupiter was made 
Their chief. And each swore 'legiance with a dire 
Terrific oath : and took commission from 
His hand ; and all seemed safe. The deadliest arms 
Were made forthwith ; and awful thunderbolts 
Were forged ; and fortresses of old repaired. 
And manned with strength ; and new dt fences raised ; 
And troops were under drill, from morn to night ; 
Or on review ; and new recruits arrive, 
Each hour ; and swell the fearful tide of war ; 
And take their arms. Their camps, in vast expanse. 
Are spread. Their standards, raised, and eaeh estate 
Have rank assigned to take in hue when e'er 
The call of battle shall require. They wait 
The foe from day to day. The foe comes not ; 



172 Satan Chained, 

But, far withm the Death-waste, bides his time. 

" He fears," say they, " nor dares to cope with us, 
" So vast." And hence their watch dechnes, and they 
Betake themselves to revelry and lust ; 
Such revelry and lust as Hell can give, 
Which wakes a burning thirst for more. 
An inward Hell, and damns anew the damned. 
O sad relief from pain ! which brings but pain 
The more. Yet such is Hell. They chose it, and 
They have their choice ; and must forever feel 
Its woe. Forever ! O, forever ! ! dread, 
Appalling word ! Let men beware ; nor choose 
The self-same wretched lot, the fate of all 
Who live, and die in sin. Let men bnrare ! 

" Their watch declined." This Jupiter perceived, 
But could not mend. The chiefs had factious grown 
Again, and spumed his rule. 'Twas only fear 
Could give him sway one hour. That hour soon came. 
For, in the depth of night, amidst their dire 
Debauch, and brawls, and fights, a sound was heard, 
A tramp of feet, and beat of wings, that shook 
The ground, and tortured all the air. And lo ! 
The cry, "They come ! they come !" They flew to arms. 
It was their only hope : and Jupiter 
At once gains sway ; and gives the word of war ; 
And all obey ; obey as far as each 
One could, amidst the ut roar, and the rush 
For arms and ])lace. But scarce the line was foimed. 
Before the shock of battle struck. It reeled, 
The Hne, but broke not, and regained its ground. 
And stood like mount of adamant before 
A volley fierce of thunderbolts ; and hand 
To hand the battle raged, 'midst darkness, and 



Satan Chained. ITo 

The shouts and yells of foe, in deadly gripe 

With foe. The direst blows were giv'n : and thrusts, 

That told too well on spirit forms, and thinned 

Their ranks. The deadly carnage reigns till morn, 

Till noon, till murky twilight's hour : and both 

Draw off for rest and what repairs a night 

Could make. 

What day had passed ! The annals of 
The damned knew no such day before ; not e'en 
The day the " Colors " met. The morrow ! O ! 
What scene the morrow will evolve ! Their blood 
Was up ; and vengeance sworn on either side. 

They sleep upon their arms, to ward surprise. 
But others sleep not, where they lay upon 
The field of strife, the wounded, waking night 
With groans, unknown on earth; and pierced through soul 
With lance or dart in venom dipped : and writhe 
And welter there upon the barbed shaft 
Id%OlI : or hold for ease their gaping wounds 
And mangled limbs ; and wait the coming mom, 
O vain ! to give rehef. Ah, what relief 
Can devils find, and wounded devils too ? 
Their wounds for ages shall endm^e ; the flesh 
Of devils heals so slow, corrupt, and filled 
With humors vile. And, healed at last, 
The wounds shall break afresh, again, and yet 
Again ! O Hell ! I would avoid thy ills, 
Thy deadly ills, the cost be what it may, 
A hand, an arm, an eye, it would be luise. 

" They sleep upon their arms," such sleep as can 
Ba had by spirits lost. " Yet some sleep not." 
But spend the night in preparation for 
The day ; procuring, or repairing arms, 



n± Sat mi Chained, 

Or sent for observation on the foe, or spies 
Within his very camp, on either side. 

But Jupiter, and Satan, each within 
His tent, alone, amid their hosts, prepare 
With utmost skill their plans of battle for 
The coming day. 'Twas done on charts demarked 
With rule and line ; and showed the first assault, 
Eetreat, and ambush where ; the phalanx, where 
To press ; and lighter legion, where ; and where 
The lancers, and the heavy guns ; and where 
The savage bow and battle-ax. For Hell 
Combines all modes of fight in every age 
And chme : and thence they found their way to earth, 
To curse the human race. 

The morning dawns, 
And with it brings the mustering to arms, 
In either host ; and fierce desire for fight. 
The hnes are stretched immense, and eager stand ; 
But waiting still the word of leader, not 
Yet come from out his tent. Each soon appears, 
With plume, and belt, and dazzling armor bright. 
And mounts at once his daring fiery steed. 
An equine thunderbolt in battle's hour, 
And curbed with golden bit and diamond reins. 
And full caparisoned for chiefs thus high. 
Scarce held, they bear their riders to their fronts 
And burn impatient for the coming fray. 

Here Satan shows in stature vast, and seems 
A worthy god ; a god deserving all 
Command. His lineaments of face bespeak 
All firmness, and his lowering brow denotes 
Impenetrable thought : and hope, so rare 
In Hell, displays a twilight in his eye. 



Satan Chained, 175 

And Jupiter, scarce less in stature and 
In mien, and gorgeous sheen of armor, moves 
Before bis lines^ and views their vast extent. 
A god he seems as well, and worthy of 
The trust assigned, to save them from the grasp 
Of Satan's deadly rule. He spoke in brief. 
And pointing to the foe on yonder plain. 
Reminded them of " that perfidious chief, 
" Who, bland, and promising a world of good, 
" Had ever failed. He promised them in Heaven, 
" The throne of God, and brought them down to Hell. 
" And then reduced them to the merest slaves, 
" To crawl beneath his feet, O faith ! and crushed 
" Them ever with his iron heel. And now's 
" The day of vengeance. Now shall he atone 
" For all his nameless wrongs and perfidy, 
" Imposed, displayed, that have for ages chafed, 
" And broken down the spirits of the sons 
'•'Of Heaven. And now shall he commence a life 
" Of endless days in deepest, darkest pit 
" That Hell can boast, a dungeon drear ; 
" Or chained forever on some lonely rock 
" In Hell's dread ocean, there shall waste his years, 
"' And feel the beat upon his naked soul, 
" Of her tempestuous and eternal waves." 

He ceased ; and fiery ardor filled each breast, 
And blazed in fury from each de^silish eye. 
The dogs of war are straining on the leash. 
Impatient for the slip. What Satan spoke 
To his, the muse recordeth not ; but scarce 
They kept their hues, from vengeance raging in 
Their helHsh breasts. The columns move full soon, 
With steady pace, and that with martial strains. 



ITG Satan Chained. 

So full, heroic, ricli, that ears in Heaven 

Might linger long to hear. Thought sad ! It was 

The prelude to a work of death. The lines, 

In near array, an awful front disclose. — 

A flash is seen — a sheet of sulph rous flame — 

A thunder bolt is hurled ; and flash on flash, 

And sheet on sheet, and bolt on bolt, begin 

The fray, from side to side. And smaller arms 

Bespond. Like hail the deadly missiles fly, 

'Mid flame, and deafening roar : as if the stores 

Of Hell had all been yielded up, at once, 

For that one single day. Terrific scene ! 

The very ground recoils, and groans beneath 

The strife. The air is tortured ; and a smoke 

Ascends, and overspreads the wide campaign 

With du-efal pall. The massy orbs besweep 

The ranks ; and plow the ground, and rend the rocks. 

And glance, and bound upon the far-off hills. 

Here chariots rage with fiery steeds, and, armed 
"With scythes, invade the ranks, and cut, and gash, 
And sweep the thousands down. The phalanx, there, 
A solid mass of hfe, but bent on death, 
Assays the line, and presses from the rear 
Its front upon a battlement of spears ; 
Which braced resist as rock of ocean all 
The fury of her waves. The legion there. 
Light armed, makes hasty onset, and retires 
Pursued ; in ambush hes ; then closes on 
The rear, and gives the rash pursuers all 
To death, 'midst yells and piteous wailings of 
Despair : while yonder, 'neath the farthest verge 
Of sky, the savage tomahawk, and bow, 
And battle ax are piled amain, from side 



Satan Chained, 177 

To side ; and spread a slaughter never known 

On earth. 

The awful day rides up to noon, 

And all in doubt ; and fearfully declines, 

And doubtful still : and Satan fears ; for here 

And there his lines are seen to bend. His last 

Keserves are brought to save the fight ; and fierce, 

And fiercer still the battle raves each hour. 

And Satan's presence is a host along 

His lines : while eager driving to and fro, 

Upon his curbed and stormy charger borne, 

"With dauntless bosom bare, and naked head, 

And rowels buried deep. He orders all, 

And fires their souls with praise, or stem rebuke, 

And raises higher still the mercur}^ 

Of Hell. Nor Jupiter an idler there. 

But drives along his ranks, supports, and fires 

Their souls to seven-fold rage. This is the last 

Great struggle Hell shall know, at least for years 

And ages yet to come, (unless the God 

Of Heaven shall send them war.) The scale wdll soon 

Be turned, the die be cast, which cycles great 

Shall not reverse. "What deeds were done that day, 

Of reckless daring and of hellish spite ! 

They stormed each other's batteries ; acd looked 

Adown the throats of devilish guns surcharged 

With death. They rushed with madness on the point 

Of spear and lance ; they fought 'gainst direst odds ; 

Nor ceased till overrun by wheels, or trod 

Beneath the mire with iron hoofs. "Where fights 

"Were equal, there the deadliest gripes were seen. 

In fury devil throttled devil with 

Relentless grasp, and wild exultant shriek. 
12 



178 Satan Chained'. 

They ride the air inlocked, or roll upon 

The bloody plain, as famished tiger on 

The heifer's chest with teeth infixed and jaws 

Besmeared with blood. In vain the suff 'ring brute 

Essays to shake the monster off. She roars, 

And rears, and plunges till her life is spent. 

So devil hangs on devil fierce and long. 

Ye heroes here of earth, ye amateurs 
Of battles, ye who make a pastime of 
A day of blood, you'll never see a fight, 
A perfect fight tiU you arrive in Hell. 
For here, the most abandoned heart, corrupt, 
Depraved, has still some spark of grace, some shred 
Of human sympathy, that interfere 
And mar the whole. But there, no grace intrudes 
No better nature s} oils that work of taste. 
God's spirit never broods upon that world. 
But deadly passions there hold perfect sway ; 
Eevenge, and hate, and spite, and selfishness supreme. 

The day and devils fast are wearing out. 
And neither side can claim the field, 
So even hath the scale of battle hung. 
And Satan fears again, that some mischance 
Of war, or stratagem of foe might turn 
The poise to his defeat. A desperate case 
A desperate course demands. His mind is made ; 
He'd stake the whole upon a single thi'ow. 
It was a charge, a simultaneous charge 
Throughcut his hn:s. A quicker speed he takes 
And omnipresent seems from right to left. 
Ilis charger foams and feels the deadly spui\ 

Now every god subaltern is informed. 
And hath the secret word. The centre now 



Satan Chained. 179 

He holds. At one great signal given, a shout, 
A thunder rush ! and foe is closed with foe. 

The hues of Jupiter, amazed, receive 
The shock — And reel — And rally — And then reel.— 
And rally yet anew, with desp'rate force. — 
But reel again, pressed hard and harder still. 

And Jupiter, With fiery haste and loud 
And clarion voice, reminds them, that " their hope, 
" Their last, last hope is come ; that now, their weal, 
" Or never, must be won. Hell's dungeons will 
" Be glutted ; or the Death-waste be their home, 
" A living death, throughout all future time ; 
" Or crucifixions torture without end. 
" O shame ! that that inferior strength should so 
" Prevail." He said. With heart revived, and shout 
That tore the very hilb, and shook the globe, 
They gain a fraction of the ground they'd lost. — 
Then pause. — And dwell. — And reel again. — Then hold 
Theu" own with desp'rate surge and deadly thrusts. — 
But yield again, though inch by inch. Alas ! 
Now hope is dying out : while Satan and 
The lesser gods apply theu' blades, which, like 
The scythe of death, are sweeping thousands down. 

Now Satan's thunder voice is heard. " One blow, 
" One surge ! and all is o'er ; and Hell is ours." 

Like ocean billows, mustering all tbeir strength, 
To sweep some barrier down, that surge, with shout 
Terrific, now is given. — They yield again — 
The Hues of Ju*piter. — They dwell. — They dwell. — 
They bend.— They break. — Their ranks are pierced, alas ! 
At every point, though fighting still. They see 
The ruin ; and they feel the force of steel. 
And shafts and bullets winged with death. They fain 



ISO Satan Chained, 

Would rally, and renew the fight ; but such 
Disorder can not be retrieved. The foe 
"With helhsh fuiy sweeps them down in heaps 
And windrows. Jupiter beholds the wreck, 
And, turning deadly pale, gives all for lost. 
The foe like fire volcanic rolls along. 
In tide resistless, and o'erwhelming all. — 
Now hope is dead, the hope of all ; save what 
Bemains in flight. They fiee. And now begins 
A work of death, to which the slaughter of 
The day seemed but a work of love. They fiee 
In wild disorder ; hot pursued by foe 
"With victory flushed, and unrelenting hate ; 
Who reap them like the harvest of the field. 
The butchery drives on amain, nor stops 
Till devils have bedrained theu' iron strength, 
And cease for respite and repose. 

And now 
What scene the eye beholds ! a scene to make 
A neutral devil weep ; and pray that Hell 
Might be reformed. What spirit forms bestrow 
The bloody field ! Like autumn leaves they he 
On every spot, and everywhere in heaps ; 
Be crushed with hoofs and godless feet, and trod 
And trampled to the earth hke mke. What cries, 
What wailings rise ! as far as ear can reach. 
Such cries earih never heard ! 

This day shall be 
Recorded in the books of Hell. This field, 
The armageddon of the damned, shall be 
Forever kept in mind. The wine-press here 
Was trod ; and blood flowed out that day, and reached 
The horses' bridles, ichor this, the blood 



Sataii Chained. 181 

Of Gods. The tmnult of that desperate fray 
Was awful to the ear. In far off Hell, 
A lonely devil here and there astray, 
Affrighted heard ; and felt the sullen jar ; 
And thought the day of judgment had arrived. 

The day is closed, and devils seek for rest, 
Fatigued and jaded to the last of strength. 
The fleeing sleep not, but for days and nights 
Pursue their weary, mournful flight ; nor cease 
Till far within the direful Death-waste, lodged ; 
Their only hope, their only safe retreat. 

And here they rest from flight and outward foe. 
Alas ! but how despoiled ! how thinned in rank ! 
How broken down in soul ! The ruin they 
Perceive, but hope is fled. They scatter, and 
Betake themselves to caves and lonely depths. 
And there unseen bewail their wretched lot. 
" Bewail." Ah, who can tell what sighs were sighed. 
What groans were groaned, what tears were wept, what 

pangs 
Were felt by these lost ones ? Ah ! lost by choice 
Of theirs. " Farewell,'' said one, that lonely sat 
Within a cave, and crazed with anguish put 
His thoughts in w^ords. " Farewell to hope, to hope 
" That once was mine ! Those bhssful fields where dwell 
" The sons of light, were fair within my reach. 
" I saw the hand of God, that beckoned me to come, 
" And live and reign in everlasting bliss. 
" He called and I refused ; reproofs I scorned, 
" But chose my way, and now, alas, 'tis o'er, 
" The harvest past, the summer ended, and 
" My soul not saved ! Eternity shall tell 
" My fault ! Eternity, that fearful word, 



182 Satan Chained. 

" Shall ever pierce my ear, and as her sands 

" Shall waste away, her dreadful cycles roll 

" Of endless years, my longing eyes shall fail, 

" My dying hope shall ever, ever die ! 

" Farewell ! FareweU ! It is my weary lot, 

*' And none to give relief ! Alone ! Alone ! 

" Though thousands me surround, alone ! alone !'* 

Now Jupiter, the god of fairest part 
Of Earth, of polished Greece, and conqu'ring Eome, 
No longer sway shall hold ; but be deposed, 
('Tis so decreed by Satan, ruling now supreme 
Again), for his defect. His temples may 
Remain for little time, and altars smoke, 
But he shall not be there ; but pent in Hell 
To expiate his crime. Another shall 
His state possess, in time, called Man-of-Sin ; 
The most corrupt, and bold, blaspheming god 
That Hell has ever sent ; and he shall war 
With God's elect, and wear his people out, 
And bathe himself in blood. And he shall sit 
As God within God's temple ; and shall show 
Himself that he is God. But God shall him 
At length destroy, with breath from out his mouth 
And with the brightness of his coming ; and 
The kingdom take, and reign to end of time. 
Now Satan takes his holds again, his forts 
And fortresses throughout, and garrisons 
With legions strong ; and adds munitions for 
Long time to come ; and finds himself more firm 
In power than e'er in times gone by. Affairs 
Of State demand his instant care. — His men, 
His ministers are named, and have their posts 
Assigned ; and each his duties shown in short. 



8atan Chained, 18o 

"What duties ? bearing rule with righteous sway ? 
Ah ! no. The sword has conquered, and the sword 
Must reign. 'Tis nought what promises were giv'n, 
What oaths were made if ever on the throne 
Again, to rule with gentle sway. Both those 
Who favored him, and who opposed, shall 
Feel his faithless foot upon their necks ahke, 
When e'er his pride or mahce shall incite. 

At length, the Death- waste has his care. He sends 
Them terms of peace ; and sends out Janus to 
Announce the same : a diplomate indeed ; 
For he could say, and then unsay, and say 
Again ; and make the most incredulous 
Beheve. He told them '•' Satan had been harsh, 
'' 'Tis true, but since this last revolt, he'd learned 
" More wisdom ; and be sure he'U be a kind 
" And gentle prince, if prince at all ; for he 
" Has serious thoughts of abdicating power, 
" To make his realm a self-controlling state, 
" A fair repubhc, where the rights of all 
'•' Shall be secure : and each, the humblest one, 
" Shall have a vote to choose the ruler for 
" A term of years, and house of commons to 
*' Withstand the power of senatorial lords : 
" Indeed, you scarcely can conceive the change 
" Of temper that our lord has found ; in fact, 
" He's been converted." Here a gracious smile 
Spread o'er his face, that gave his words more force. 
How sweet, how fair ! and they could half believe. 
He pledged his honor, " if they would submit, 
" And march from out the Death-waste, and depose 
" Then- arms, that all the past should be forgot : 
" So Satan had decreed.'' They asked for time 



184 Satan Chained. 

To think. — They called a eonTocation to 

Decide. — The conclave met. What scene ! how wan, 

How haggard they ! how withered up in hope ! 

They meet, but not like men, and chiefs 

Who feel, though yanquished, they have strength yet left ! 

And can demand some fau' and equal terms, 

That should instate them somewhat as before : 

But like rebeUious city drained and starved 

Till no conditions could be asked ; but all 

Their hope is from the mercy of the foe : 

And he be trusted for the boon of life. 

'Twas so with these ; but Satan knew it not. 
Nor once e'en dreamed how wrecked in spirit, and 
Demoralized they were : or he had sent 
More haughty word ; and made more stern demand. 

The day arrived, and Janus came to hear 
The grand result. •' We yield," said they, " but in 
" The fullest confidence, that all his words 
" Will be ful fil led ; our rights be all secure.'' 

The writing signed and sealed, a day was set 
When they should stand upon the Death-waste verge, 
And wait their sovereign's will. It came. With pomp 
The haughty chief awaits the hour assigned, 
With all his hosts in full array ; himself 
Upborne sublime, in gorgeous chariot, seen ; 
His lords on either side, on magic steeds, 
Caparison'd with gems and burnish'd gold. 
They champ the fiery bit, and paw the plain. 
And restless snuff the air with nostril wide. 
As if from smell of battle from afar : 
And press the curb, impatient to be gone. 

Now in the verge of sky the dust of feet 
Beclouds the aii'. It was the vanquish'd host 



Satan Chained, 185 

In doleful march, to meet the hour assign'd. 
But 'twas their best. To stay, was death ; and then 
Be hunted down, from year to year, by scouts 
Of armed bands, from Satan sent ; and scourged 
And flayed ahve. — They near the scene like ox 
To slaughter led, and form in line immense ; 
But wan, and pale, and starved. At signal given. 
With tearful eye, and soul bereft of hope, 
They ground their arms, and march to yonder plain, 
A helpless crew : and shrink to see the arms 
Of steel, in hostile hands, that them surround. 
Ask not their after fate. The muse declines 
The bloody record ; save to say, that all 
The promises that Satan made were broke : ^ 

And thousands disappeared, and none their fate 
Could tell. The rest, alas ! forever groaned 
And bled beneath his fierce despotic will 
And everliving malice. 

Hell ere long 
"Was hushed ; no clamors loud, no murmurs rose ; 
No " shriek for freedom ^' heard : but all, throughout. 
Is silent as the house of death. The sword, 
The tyrant's sword, is all in all ; his foot, 
On every neck : And order reigns in Hell. 

END OF BOOK SIXTH. 



Satan Chained^ 187 



BOOK VII. 



The muse ascends with willing wing, and 'scapes 
The direful world of spirits lost, where wars 
And deadly passions reign, and sins. 
That shock the eye or ear, and pain the heart. 
" Escapes," and fain would breathe a fresher air, 
And range o'er fairer fields. 

'Twas day in Heav'n, 
If day can be distinguished there where all 
Is day, where light but flows and ebbs like tide 
Of ocean, giving now a fuller, now a slacker sea, 
But ocean still. — No sun is needed there, 
Nor moon. — But God himself gives light, the Son, 
The Father, and the Spirit, one. It rolls 
From off God's mountain, not in dazzling beams, 
To pain the sense, and darken every eye : 
But down in soft effulgence, spreading wide 
O'er all the vast domain of Heav'n, its slopes. 
And hills, its copses sweet, and luscious groves, 
And plains immcDse. There dwell the sons of God, 
Those faithful found, who stood their time, mayhap. 
In distant worlds ; who kept unbroke God's law ; 
Or, breaking it, returned to him in time 
With penitential tears ; and pardon found 
Through grace vouchsafed. These now forever dwell 
Before his face, arrayed in white, and reap 



IS8 Satan Ckalntd. 

The harvest rich, that once they sowed. " 'Twas day 

In HeaT'n." A mustering of hosts appear. 

In ranks the shining- armies stand, in leno-th 

Unreached by spirit eyes. And wayicg high 

In air the common flag is seen. It rolls 

Its folds of gold and richest dyes, embossed 

With figures, that declare full plain, it is 

The standard of the King of Heaven. Each corps 

Its banner had, to signify the world 

From which they came. — What worlds were there ! how vast 

The field from which God gathers home his own, 

His faithful ones ! They march, led on 

By high archangel, to the heav'nly sound 

Of instrumental notes. They march to meet 

The Son of God ascending up fi^om earth. 

From world redeemed. He comes. The banners w^ve; 

A shout rolls round the hills ; and songs proclaim 

Him victor o'er his foes. " Lift up your heads, 

" Ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye doors, 

" Ye everlasting doors, and let the King 

" Of glory come. The Lord, the Lord his name, 

" And mighty to redeem." Thus sang the host 

As they received him, come, incarnate God 

Of late, but " risen " now, with body of 

The resurrection type. Triumphal day ! 

They pass the broad and golden streets, bestrewn 
With palms and amaranthine fiowers ; 
And he receives again the glory that 
He had before the world was made : 
And which he left, becoming poor, that he 
Ivlight make poor mortals rich. How rich ! He takes 
His throne, and all the angehc hosts before 
Him bend : and he is Lord of all, and called 



Satan Chained. 189 

The Lamb. Now God is seen mform, no more 

In light alone, and from bis mount ; but face 

To face. He leads them out, and walks and talks 

With his. " The mount of God !" It rises high, 

Beyond all ken of sight, and radiant 
AVith glories uncreate, inspires an awe 
That none can dare approach ; but nathless, is 
The fount of every good. From this, flows out 
That wond'rous stream, the riv'r of life. It rolls, 
And rolls its ever brimming tide throughout, 
And freshens aU the vales of Heaven ; and laves 
The trees upon its banks, that bear the fruits, 
And yield them ripened every month. — " None dare 
" Approach," except the Lamb, the Son. He talks 
With God the F;'.ther ; passes up the mount, 
And there holds close communion, wrapped in light. 
And sometimes cloud, as with his fellow ; then, 
Kesplendent with the glory of the scene, 
Descends, as Moses from the cloud and fire 
With face illumed that Israel could not well 
Behold ; " descends," and holds communion with 
His own again. 

At stated times in Heav'n 
Are festivals. They meet from every point 
Of compass ; from the vales, and flow'ry dells. 
And hills, and mountain tops ; as shade, or sweet 
Eepose, or landscape rich, or friendly talk, 
Or contemplation staid, had moved their choice. 

The season lasts for days. What multitudes 
Partake ! 'WHiat fare is found ! The richest fruits 
Are ripe ; such fruits as only grow in Heaven, 
And most luxurient near the throne of God. 

The bread of life is served beyond all bound ; 



190 Satan Chained. 

And nectar, pressed from clusters of the Tine, 
The Hying vine, the tropic grape of Heaven. 

Kepast is o'er ; and fiiendship now ensues. 
"What greetings then ! what long embrace of pure 
Angehc love ! Old friends of ages gone, 
Are joined again ; and talk theu' hist'iy o'er ; 
Recount the scars by which their bhss was won ; 
Their hairbreadth 'scapes reveal ; and then extol 
That grace that long forbore, that Providence 
That cleared their path, and led them on ; that love 
That brought them home at last, and crowned them kings 
And priests forever unto God. " The voj'ge 
" "Was rough," say they, " at times, the tempest high ; 
" And dark the clouds ; and wide the billows yawned. 
" Our barks shipped seas, that threatened to engulph ; 
" And faith was nigh to fail ; but God was in 
" The ship, and that when least we thought. 
" And, better than our fears, he brought us safe 
*' To land, the haven of our rest. Our ship 
" Is moored ; our anchor fii-mly cast ; and aU 
" Is o'er. Eternal ages now shall roll, 
" And we are safe. No billows more to cross, 
** No storms to meet ; no fights to win. 

" We hear the roar afar as mariner 
" Arrived and housed upon the beach with all 
" His joyous friends. — But where are they that voy'ged 
" With us at first ? They left the pole star of 
" Their faith ; their compass threw aside ; and veered 
" From out their course, and now are wreck'd and lost." 
A tear now falls. — A tear ? What ! tears in Heav'n ? 
Yes, tears in Heav'n. Have angels lost then love ? 
If Christ himself could weep at Salem's fate, 
Or at the tomb, then why not sphits saved, 



Satan Chained, 191 

For fellow spirits lost ? Ah, tears shall fall 

In Heav'n for loved ones missed ! The father weep 

The son ; the son, the sire ; the daughter, or 

The mother weep, as one is not ; the wife, 

The husband ; or reverse ; and friend, for friend. 

Oh sin ! oh sin pursued ! It wrecks the soul, 

And checks the bhss of Heaven. O Heav'n save ! 

But men must have their choice. God gives enough, 
" Choose life, choose death, and bide the great result." 

But will not God " wipe tears fi'om every eye ?" 
Yes, these he'll wipe as well as those of earth. 
For, of that feast, the last great day is come. 
And near its close. Th' assembly soon will break. 

And now the call is given, " draw near to God^' 
In voice distinct fi'om off the mount, a voice 
Of love. — And Heav'nly influence begins 
To fall. The shining armies gather round, 
And thicken from afar ; and stand with eyes 
Upraised, expectant, towards the throne of God, 
That topless hill, involved in clouds, and seas 
Of ever hving hght. — The show'r descends, 
And waters every soul, a show'r of love. 
The soul is filled ; — they prostrate fall, subdued, 
And scarce a pulse of life is left, from bliss. 
From ecstacy of bhss. — " I charge you wake' 
" Me not ; but here forever let me lie, 
" Entranced with love Divine." God's hand is on 
Them ; and their cup is full, and runniug o'er. 
They pause, enwraped ; and silence rei<:ns in Heaven. 

At length the tide abates ; and God withholds 
His hand. They rise ; in bhssful stillness stand ; 
For none would speak, and none would be disturbed. 

The hour is passed ; they soft retire, in smiles, 



192 Satan Chained. 

In whispers mild ; still more and more impressed 

With God's -unbounded love, and with the worth 

Of that great Heav'n they've won. Ah ! what in such 

A world as this could wicked spirits do, 

Who formed on earth no taste for such dehghts ? 

The vile shall never enter there, lest they 

Disturb that lovely Heav'n they never could 

Enjoy. Let men remember ; let them full 

Beware, it is " the pure in heart shall see 

" Their God.'' Then seek that fountain that alone 

Can cleanse ; nor risk one moment by delay. 

The festal days are o'er. The last great day 
Of that great feast is closed. They separate, 
But not to solitude, and lonely hfe. 
But friend with friend of old or lately found, 
Allied, and families, rejoined from earth. 
And safe arrived, though one by one, betake 
Themselves to everlasting homes, prepared 
And fitted up for them by God's own hand. 

They meet, they greet, they rest, they part no more ! 
Yes, " famihes," for ties on earth are ties 
In Heav'n. Though husband and the wife, as such. 
Are not, the tie no less remains. They meet 
As friends, as dearest friends. The mother clasps 
With frantic joy her precious, lovely babe, 
Of whom bereft on earth ; the brother and 
The sister long embrace ; the hoary sire 
That was, his lonQ- lost son ; the son, the sire 
So long reposed in dust ; and mansions ring. 
And grots and dells resound, with bursts of joy, 
With shouts, that cannot be repressed, at loved 
Ones safe conducted home. 'Tis joy to meet 
On earth, though parting soon may come ; but what 



Satan Chained, 193 

The joy in Heav'n, where union shall revive, 

And be as lasting as the throne of God ? 

O Heav'n ! 'Tis worth the toil, 'tis worth the cross, 

'Tis worth the conflict here. They fled for life. 

And dwelt in dens, and mountain caves ; were clad 

In skins, and roamed o'er desert wastes ; were deemed 

The filth of earth ; were buffeted, and vexed ; 

"Were starved, and parched with thirst : but they endure, 

As seeing him who was invisible. 

And now a harvest of eternal hfe 

Is theirs. 'Tis true, tho sickle scarred the hand ; 

Nay, gashed down deep at times ; but what care now ? 

The grain is all secure ; the harvest home ; 

And garnered up forever for their use. 

Ah ! this the Eest that did " remain " for God's 
Obedient ones ; the Rest prefigured by 
The Rests on earth. The sun lights on them not. 
Nor any heat. They hunger now no more ; 
Nor thirst ; and never, never say, " I'm sick." 
The fruits of Heav'n are theirs ; the tree of life ; 
And waters gushing fresh from Hviug springs ; 
Or dipped from that great flood, the riv'r of hfe. 

But intellectual joys are theirs. They scan 

The works of God ; and pry with ease ; and stand 

Amazed at wonders now revealed. Nor on 

The plains of Heav'n alone ; but far through space 

On happy wing conveyed, they calculate 

The laws of distant worlds ; weigh every force ; 

And balance suns and spheres. They guage the size 

Of masses vast, and rate their speed, and trace 

Their intricate Hbrations as the effects of all ; 

And problems solve, that ne'er were solved before. 

Nor always on the vast employed ; but e'en 
13 



194 Satcm Chained. 

Descend to most minute, and there descry 

The simple atoms God has made ; descern 

Their evanescent size, theii' shape, their weight ; 

And note them still unworn and fresh as when 

They first came weighed and measured from his hand. 

Though fused and cooled, combined and decombined, 

And ground, and crushed, for ages vast. — And then 

Ascend, and note with vision keen the nice. 

And endless combinations of these few, 

To make the vast variety of all 

God's works ; and then again ascend, and mark 

The work of life, in building up the forms 

Of Hving things, — from small to great ; the grass 

Of microscopic size, to giant oaks 

And pines ; from animalcules scarcely reached 

By searching glass, to monsters huge of land 

And sea ; the inner work of life ; a sight 

Desired by men, but not revealed ; revealed 

To spirit eyes alone : "While some their thoughts 

To metaphysics give ; and all the deep 

And dark phenomena of mind, explore ; 

And find a field of rarest, richest thought. 

And then descend to deep theology ; 

And scan the government and laws of God. 

And now fmd difficulties cleared, that once 

Perplexed the greatest minds on earth. — 'Tis plain 

God acts from reason. Now 'tis seen why some 

Such thorny footsteps trod ; and suffered loss. 

On earth, of all ; and wasted out, mayhap, 

The flower of all their days, to hoary years. 

In dungeons ; why the mcked and the strong 

Had power to prey upon the innocent 

And weak ; and rob of right ; and, darker still. 



Satan Chained, 19^ 

Why pain should be coeval with our birth ; 

And infants, innocent of crime, should wake 

To life in pangs, should Hve a day, and then 

In pangs expire. Perplexing thought ! Why one 

Should sow the seed, and then another reap ; 

Why this to savage, that to civil life 

Were born ; why some, and wicked too, should have 

A sm-feit of the things of life, scarce sought, 

But flowing in hke ocean tide ; while want 

Beset the path of others from the hour 

Of birth, through all their weary course of life, 

Till death vouchsafed for them a welcome grave : 

And why the son of hving sire was spared, 

While death, relentless, took the widow's hope, 

Her only son, and left her helpless to 

A selfish world. These doubts, and thousands more, 

That harrowed once on earth, are solved with ease ; 

And God is cleared when he is judged. The range 

Is wide, and spirit minds forever search, 

With keen dehght, and never, never tire. 

O Heaven ! 'tis not to " sit upon a cloud. 
And sing," as infidels have scornful said ; 
But to receive a scope of social joys, 
And intellectual feasts, that never cloy ; 
And pleasures, ever more, through every sense ; 
From sights, from sounds, from tastes, and odors sweet. 

Ah ! Heav'n is rich. — 'Tis worthy of a God 
To give, and worth our while to see 
That we receive. We fain would have its bHss, 
Its endless joys : Then let our Hves and faith 
Accord with this desire. Then all is sure. 

But some, on messages of mercy sent, 
Are spread through earth, and mayhap other worlds, 



196 Satan Chained. 

As spiiits " minist'rmg '' to those wlio need 

Their aid, the ignorant, the weak ; bat who 

At length, if kept, may win salvation. — Swift 

As thought they fly ; and snatch theii^ charge, or turn 

Aside, with gentle hand, unseen, from deaths 

Or pitfals of the moral world. The wing 

Of angel mother hovers o'er her babe. 

Late left an orphan in a friendless world : 

A thousand arrows turns aside, and, as 

His yeai-s advance, and snai'es of youth beset. 

And coui'age fails, and piinciple gives way. 

And all is near awi'eck ; — infuses life 

Afresh ; in midnight slumbers oft, or in 

The hour of silent thought, in lonely walk ; 

Or close retu'ement fi'om the outward world. 

He feels his strength revived ; but knows not whence 
It came. He battles on anew, nor falls 
Thus far ; and mayhap yet will win the race 
Of vu*tue here, thus saved ; and find, at length, 
His g-uardian mother in the better land. 
"Who knows ? Then, orphan, grieve not over much, 
That in your tender years, your mother laid 
Her trembling hand upon yom- head, and looked 
To God, and prayed, and died. She may be near 
Thee, keeping ceaseless watch with mingled hope 
And fear ; and clearing up thy path, as God 
Ordains. — Then gii'd thy loins, be strong, and see. 
Thou disappoint her not. Xot this alone ; 
The babe, late snatched away, the mother left, 
The babe may come, to win the mother home ; 
A youthful spuit now ; and borne away 
To break her hold on earth ; and bind her to 
The skies. — ^It fans her feverish brow, and soothes 



Satan Chained. 197 

Her aching head, and softly whispers peace 
And comfort to her bleeding heart. Yes, God 
Has uses for us in the other ux>rld. 
And greatest joy ^vill spring from greatest good 
By us achieved, as spirits, in that world. 

Come soar from earth, and rise to heav'n agaii^ 
And note the angels of the first of time, 
A patriarchal throng, retired upon 
A mount, in conclave met, the savans of 
The skies ; discussing nicest points in all 
God's works ; or weighing probabihties 
Of things to come, the birth of worlds, mayhap, 
Or end of those now made — These faithful stood, 
With myiiads more, in that defection great 
When Satan faithless fell. And prominent 
Among them all, sits Abdiel ; the first 
Of all God's works ; a hoary headed youth : 
How vast his age ! Eternity of years 
Has almost run its course since he was made. 
He woke to life, and found himself alone. 
Not long. His fellows then were made, and since, 
Forever since, angelic beings have been 
Brought to hfe. (But late, they're clothed in flesh, 
And stand their trial in terestrial worlds.) 

How rich in learned lore ! What worlds of 
Facts they've garnered up ! for memory in Heav'n, 
Unlike the same on earth, forever holds 
When once impressed. These facts are sorted and 
Compared ; and thence conclusions drawn, of worth 
Unspeakable ; the most inspiring truths. 
Of startling import, and profound, deduced 
In physics, and the deep theology 
Of God ; far deeper than the younger sons 



198 Satan Chmned. 

Of Heav'n have reached : and yet forever when 

They meet, new depths are sounded and new truths 

Deduced. These saw when God went forth to make 

The worlds. At first, he spake to behig, through 

All space diffused, the simple elements, 

(Or mayhap, one, one element alone 

From which, all others should in time be formed,) 

Yet uncombined , a vapor thin and fine, 

Scarce visible to spirit eyes. They called 

It matter. 'Twas distinct from spirit ; and 

It took them by surprise. They'd never dreamed 

Of such a thing before ; for spirit, they 

Had thought, was all that could be made. 

The spirit now of God moves on the face 
Of this great deep ; and finished out the laws 
Of matter then in full. These laws were few 
And simple ; but with God to give them force, 
Were capable of working out in time 
The problem great of worlds. Now first begins 
To act that all-coherent power, through space. 
Called gravitation. Matter moves and tends 
To matter. Centres form at length throughout 
inimitable space. This ocean vast 
Of vapor, wide beyond all reach of thought, 
And deep as wide, and high as deep, now breaks 
In spheres or cubes of vast peripherj^ ; 
And each department tow'rds its centre moves : 
At first, with slow progression, balanced nigh 
By neighboring spheres or cubes, that draw adverse. 
And tend, themselves, the other way. But as 
The spaces widen, and the outward forces wane. 
And inward forces gain new strength, (as time 
Kolls on,) from distance less immense of parts, 



I 



Satan Chained, 199 

The atoms move more lively ; and with swift 

And swifter speed, rush inward tow'rds the goal, 

The centre far of their amazing mass. 

The elements, condensing thus, become 

More tangible. They still approach, approach 

And thicken, pressing hard and harder still 

Upon each other, till the pressure, and 

Momentum checked by force opposing, and 

The friction, bring forth fire. The atoms in 

Dissociation long from heat, at length 

Combine, some silently, (with fervent heat,) 

"While others with explosive force unite, 

And sheets of flame, that shoot far out to space, 

(Amazing sight ! and awful sound as heard 

Afar ;) and startle angels as they lean 

And look from HeaA^en. The war of elements 

Has now begun ; and oxygen, the great 

Eight hand of God, performs its destined work. 

The simples burn, fit fuel now become ; 

And substances of diverse kinds are formed, 

But vapor still, and still condense as heat 

Escapes through boundless space : they form at length 

One globe immense of boist'rous fire. One globe ? 

Nay, ev'ry block of matter, through all space, 

Has been condensed, and bm-ned, and thus become 

A sphere of boist'rous fire, condensing still. 

And still tremendous in its heat. These globes 

Are flaming suns, of amplitude immense, 

The whole beyond all thought. Stupendous scene ! 

And scattered through infinitude of space. 

*' Let thei-e be light ;" and this the light that shone. 

These suns all wheel upon their centres ; and, 
Condensing still by gravity still more 



200 Satan Chained, 

And more increased as parts approximate. 

Revolve with higher speed, and throw off worlds, 

(Or rings mayhap, which break to worlds,) and these 

Again throw rings, which break and bring forth moons. 

These worlds move round their central suns, and moons 

Eound them, in orbits more or less remote, 

With speed immense, and blazing as they fly . 

"Which, cooled still more for ages vast, present 

A hardened rocky crust, but waved and torn 

By inward fires, and smashed by thunderbolts : 

Not cold as yet, but hot and hissing to 

The falling rains, which crack their substance as 

The show'rs descend. 

Our globe, — (thus rent, and torn, 
And worn, by act of heat, and rains, and floods. 
And hurricanes, that waged incessant war, 
To break, and grind the heavy rocks, and drive 
The hghter to unstable banks and shoals ; 
Thus pulveiizing fine and finer still,) 
Now calmer grown, and covered deep and wide 
With the deiiitus of a biUion years, 
And clouds and noxous gases cleared away — 
At last is ready for the work of hfe, 
Another wonder soon to be revealed. 

God intervenes and makes the germs of trees, 
And grass, and shrubs. These spring from earth, 
And clothe with living green. Fu'st, round the poles 
The work of vegetable life is seen. 
For there the genial cHmes begin. And as 
Each aofe revolves, and inward fires subside 
From radient heat ; terrestrial verdui'e moves 
To other zones. And when the earth is stocked 
With food ; and noxious gases still more cleared. 



Satan Chained. 201 

(By minerals, and vegetable life, ) 

And air is safe to breathe, God intei*venes 

Again ; and animals are made. And first, 

The lower ranks are formed ; then higher come ; 

The reptiles, and the fishes : and with them, 

Aquatic birds ; some small, and some of size 

Gigantic. Lo ! the sam'ians appear ; and sweep 

The bays and marshes ; and with head erect 

Display such length of body prone behind 

As human eyes have never seen, and birds 

That stalked the fens like moving towers, and frogs 

Of elephantine size. These had their day, 

And then were swept away by changes wide 

And ruinous upon the crust of earth. 

Then others took their place, of later type, 
And higher order still. And these are lost 
Again in tm^n ; and others then succeed : 
While ages long elapse, and wars assuage. 
Of elemental strife ; and earth is smoothed 
And setthng down ; and rip'niug for its last, 
And highest ranks of life. 

At length appear, 
(How vast the ages gone !) in myriad force, 
The brutes of modern type ; the ox, the horse, 
The stag, the boar, the mastodon, the dog, 
The wolf, the bear, the elephant, the fox. 
The lion, tiger, and the antelope ; 
And all the rest, that now inhabit land. 
And sea, and air. The earth is all their own. 
They roam at will, o'er plains and hills, or in 
The floods ; and crop the fields unhedged, 
Or take a surfeit of their prey at will ; 
And swarm the seas and bnys unsought, and lash 



U02 Satan Chained. 

To foam the shore-ward surf, unscared ; and wing 

The air in fearless flight. The noble steed 
Besports himself upon the plain, untamed ; 
The tigress roams secure with whelps 
From out her jungle ; and the hon, now 
So stealthy and secrete, then chose his lair 
In open face of day. 

But ere the full 
Completion of God's works, there was an age 
Of ice, which more perplexes man than all 
The other ages earth has known. They saw. 
These sayans saw its reign ; amazement filled 
Their souls, a strange phenomenon for earth, 
From snows perpetual from age to age : 
Till she was wrapped about the poles, and far 
Toward torrid climes, with half of ocean piled 
In shining masses up to Heayen. For though 
The earth was glowing hot within, and heat. 
In slow progression passing thi'ough her crust 
Incesbant, thawed the mass below ; yet still 
It gi'ew from greater increment aboTe. 
And age on age roUed on, and still the snows 
Forever fell ; and hails, and sometimes rains. 
That beat them down and glacified the whole , 
Till both the polar spheres, thus burdened, groaned 
Beneath the load. At length, — ^how vast the time ! 
The time, as time is reckoned now with man, 
(And yet 'twas but a day, compared with earth's 
THiole time : nay, less, far less ; 'twas but an hotu-. 
So vast the mighty sum of earth's full years. ) 
— The age of snow is o'er, and genial suns 
Haye now the work on hand, ( how long the task !) 
In summer days to disencumber earth 



Satan Chained. 203 

Of this vast weight, and send the waters back 

To ocean bed again. And yet it will 

Be done, for God has time enough for work 

Of every kind how slow soe'er the work 

Goes on. 'Twas done at last : and temp'rate climes 

Regain at length theii' lost estate ; and feel 

Once more the touch of life. But oh how changed 

The face of earth is now. This icy mass 

So piled and piled about the poles, had shpped 

(Like Alpine glaciers at the present day ) 

And slipped with force amazing, but with slow 

And steady move, from its abutments far 

Away ; had shpped for all the ages gone ! 

This mass immense, piled high above the hills 

And e'en the mountain tops, had urged its way 

Among the peaks and crags, and rent their tops, 

And torn and worn their sides ; and ground the hills. 

And plowed the vales and ravines deep ; and rolled 

The looser rocks, and borne them off to other parts. 

And floods subglacial dming all this time, 

Had bored their hidden way among the rocks ; 

And wrought out channels, in the end, which still 

Remain, where now our busy commerce floats. 

At length, reduced in thickness and iu power, 

This mighty engine of the hand of God 

Stood still ; and left its burden of debris, 

Its pohsh, and its groves, upon the rocks, 

To tell that it had been. These savans of 

The skies beheld this wond'rous age that drove 

Its plowshare over earth to fit it more 

And more for man's abode. 

Thus years roll on, 
And centuries of years ; and earth still waits, 



2U4: Satan Chained, 

And ripens still ; still waits tlie coming of 

Her lord. " Let us 7)iake man" at length went forth, 

A work that called forth thought, a work that had 

FuU counsel ; and was marked as other acts 

Of God's creating hand were never marked. 

Lo ! man appears ; then female by his side : 
The last great act of God's creative power 
On earth. 

'Twas finished. And God rested from 
His work. Creation was achieved. An age 
Is now allotted to the human race, 
Called seventh day ; and, that complete, the eighth 
Day then will come, and God will work again, 
Mayhap. And what that work wiU be, nor man 
Nor angel can divine. Perhaps the trump. 
The judgment trump shall wake the eighth day mom ; 
When all of Adam's race shall hear the call. 
And leave their beds ; and stand, to meet the " Thkone,' 
And take the wages of their acts on earth. 
Who knows ? 

The savans of the skies beheld 
The work, from first to last, (howe'er 'twas done,) 
Beheld the whole achieved, through all the vast, 
Yast ages called the " Six" great "Days." They saw ; 
And with amazement traced each step, and were 
Forever taken by surprise, and most, 
That spirits could be clothed in flesh, and walk 
Abroad in image of their God. They saw. 
Not earth alone, but all that God achieved 
On suns and worlds, that were produced 
Throughout illimitable space. And they 
Shall see yet more. And we, if but among 
The blest, shall see new wonders springing forth 



Satan Chained. 205 

From God's prolific hand ; shall see when all 
The worlds and suns that now inhabit space 
Shall be extinct ; and God repeat again 
And yet again, with variations, tme, 
The problem great of making worlds. 
Fear not, eternity has ample time. 
And you and I shall sure be there to see 
And wonder, (if we keep his law while here. 
Or seek, and find forgiveness of our sins, 
And walk with him obedient to his will.) 

What hopes are ours ! How bright the prospects rise ! 
What ages vast of knowledge we shall have ! 
What excellence attain ! and stand, — the time 
Shall come, — where high archangels now are found, 
And they, as much advanced from us as now. 
And mayhap more. How kind that God that made 
Us, and hath called us to such high estate ! 
The feast is ready, and we all are bid. 
Let none delay ; lest he should rise and " shut 
The door ;" and then, ah ! who shall open then ? 

END OF BOOK SEVEN. 



Satan Chained, 207 



BOOK VIII 



The while, the Church of God was taking root. 
Full deep. The converts had been scattered, ere 
The day that Satan left the field to save 
His realm below from power usurped. 

They fled to every part, and preached the word. 
And thus the seed was sown in every soil ; 
"Which sprang up, watered by the dews of Heaven. 
A Saul had ceased to persecute, and now 
Was building up with master-hand the cause 
Which late he had essayed to overthrow. 
The Holy Ghost was there ; and waited on 
The word, by prophet and apostle preached, 
Or by the simple child of God without 
A name or office in the church. But oh ! 
How foolish ! 'Twas the cross they preached, the cross, 
The story of the cross ; and yet it cut 
The heathen down ; and pierced the Jewish heart ; 
And even made a multitude of priests, 
With all their legal pride, " obedient to 
The faith." The power was seen ; the heart was changed ; 
And bloody men became as gentle lambs. 
'Twas new, 'twas wonderful. The haughty Jew 
With envy saw ; the vdse beheld amazed. 

What hope for earth ! An element is now 
At work, — ^how needful this ! that shall in time 



208 8a;tan Chained. 

Remould the face of things ; shall renovate 
The human heart ; and wake the dormant mind 
To intellectual effort ; and at length, 
Though long the time, shall work the glory of 
Our race ; a world conyerted ; and our earth. 
Oar desert earth, shall make a paradise, 
A garden of the Lord. That day shall come. 

But ere that time, what storms, what tempests fierce 
Shall sweep o'er earth ! what battle rage 'twixt truth 
And error 1 Yes, be sure, that IMichael and 
The dragon shall contend ; and age on age 
Elapse, and still the battle high : but in 
The end, — O haste the time ! — th' opposing powers 
Shall cease. O glorious thought ! and earth shall feel 
The thrilling touch of life. Then empires built 
Upon despotic rule, shall totter to 
Theu" fall ; and thrones shall crumble 'neath the feet 
Of kmgs. The masses then, enhghtened, and 
Refined, and Scripture-read, and christianized 
In heart, shall bear the rule ; and emperors, 
And kings, and presidents, shall be installed 
But servants of their will. Oppressions then 
Shall cease ; the slave be fi'ee ; O blessed hope I 
And om- humanity all eager stand. 
Equipped and ready for its glorious race. 

A century is gone, and lo the change ! 
The Nazarene is rising. Every land 
Has heard his name ; and his disciples stand 
In ev'ry clime, an earnest of his reign. 
His kingdom yet to come ; not thickly sown. 
But sparse 'tis true, and yet like wheat among 
Abundant tares. Among the low they're found. 
The middle, and the high, and e'en in courts, 



Satan Chained. 209 

And palaces of kings. A kingdom this 
Within a kingdom ; silent working like 
The leaven, till the lump shall own its power. 

The Scriptures now are full, an ample rule 
Of faith and life, with that great vision, closed. 
Upon the isle of Patmos, seen. And pens, 
In eager haste, are throwing out the word. 
The priceless word, to be the salt of earth. 

The time seems long. Yet what is time with God ? 
With him a thousand years are but a day. 
Be patient, and the work shall yet be done. 

But Satan took alarm, recovered now 
From that stupendous war, that crushed his foes, 
And seated him again in power. He took 
Alarm, and felt withal a deep chagrin. 
That pierced his soul ; alarm, that still the cause 
Of truth and righteousness was living on 
The earth ; and deep chagrin, that nothing had 
Availed, of all his plans ; that all his boasts 
And promises had failed ; and this was known 
And read of all ; was whispered round, and was. 
Among his foes, where all v/ere foes of his, 
A never-ending source of fiendish mirth. 

It stung him to the quick. But what, what could 

Be done. Still greater pangs await him ; for 

He must confess his weakness ; and must call 

For aid on some more likely to succeed 

Than he. He called up Man-of-Sin ; and spoke 

In humbler terms than wont ; and questioned him 

If he was equal to the task ; if he 

Could venture up on earth, and there could dare 

Th' attempt to block the wheels and sto'p the car 

Of Christ. " I know your cunning and youi' craft ; 
14 



210 Satan Chained, 

" I know your sanctimoniotis face, and lust 

" Of power. I know you can assume a garb 

" Of saintly mein, while daggers still lie hid 

" Beneath. Can aught be done ? If so, you shall 

'* Be seated high, and next to me, your king* ; 

" And shall be deemed the benefactor of 

" Our realm." Then Man-of-sin, with brazen front, 

Replied, " I dare the thing ; I dare to tread 

" Where God has trod, to sit upon his seat, 

" And in his temple take his name, and show 

" That I am God. Your Holiness shall see " — 

*' No ! no !" said Satan, " not that title now 

" For me. It shall be yours in time if you 

" Succeed. ' Your Holiness ' shall be the term, 

" The title sure of Man-of-sin. But how 

" Will you proceed ?" " As stealthy as the foot 

" Of time ; or death upon the sinner's track. 

" 111 slip unseen and unsuspected up 

" To earth. I'll show a zeal for God and Christ ; 

" A zeal no true apostle ever showed ; 

" A flaming zeal, that shall the passions raise. 

" And one shall be of Paul, another of 

" Apollos, and a third of Cephas be. 

" A little error then I'll sow, and men 

" Shall differ in some points of faith. And hence 

*' Contentions shall arise, not fierce, at first, 

" Nor threat'ning, but a cloud the bigness of 

" A hand, a harmless thing, but which in time 

" Shall bring the wildest storm ; with rage unchecked 

*' Shall cause the elements to reel, and shake 

" The pillars of the church of Christ. And then 

" From being brethren, one shall claim to rule. 

" And bishop shall be master of each flock. 



Satan Chained. 211 

" And bishop then with bishop shall contend, 
" And claim to be the ruler of the whole. 

" The pagan also shall be roused with zeal 
" Anew, to save his temples and his gods ; 
" And with excessive rage, like famished wolves. 
" Insatiate, shall faU upon the weak 
*•' And trembling flock. The land shall run with blood ; 
' The shepherds, be a prey ; and thinned, if not 
" Extinct, the fold of Christ. What more I'll do, 
" Shall be revealed when next we meet." He said. 
And Satan smiled ; the first for ages past ; 
So sure at last that his selection was 
With wisdom made. 

Now Man-of-sin prepares 
To take his leave. He puts on saintly show. 
And as he passed he startled all the damned. 
They thought a saint had strayed to Hell, 
So like he was. They rushed with daggers drawn, 
To strike him to the heart. But Satan stayed 
Their hands, and gave assurance he was one 
Of them ; he was their fellow, Man-of-sin, 
Was tbus prepared to act the part of saint 
On earth. — Oh ! he shall there deceive, deceive 
The elect of God. He went to earth ; and what 
He promised quite too well performed. He stirred 
Up foes within, and foes without ; the love 
Of many waxing cold ; and many, faint 
Returning back to earth. But still a seed 
Remained ; a church within a church ; a seed. 
That lived and grew. And yet how fierce the storm 
To beat it down ! The plain disciples of 
The Lord, are haled to prison more than erst. 
And made to answer for the worst of crimes. 



212 Sat mi Chained, 

E'en infant blood was laid to Christian doors. 

How false ! and pestilence and adverse storms, 

Were placed to their account, and ev'ry ill 

With which God scourged a guilty world. They, they 

Must answer for them all, and must atone 

With tears, and blood. 

Alas ! behold yon games, 
An amphitheater with thousands choked. 
The polished savages of pagan Eome ! 
They stamp and clamor for the coming sport. 
And in the dread arena stands or kneels. 
With eyes uplift in prayer, but pale, the child, 
The death-doomed child of God, to die outright. 
Or battle for an inch of life. A sword 
Is giv'n, but not for him, but simply to 
Prolong the sport : while on the shrinking ear, 
Eolls awful from his den, the lion's roar. 
Ferocious, late from scorched Numidian plains ; 
Now chafed with hunger and the keeper's scourge. 
The bars at length are slipped, and with a bound 
And thunder voice, appears the fiery brute. 
Appalled, he gazes for a moment on 
The crowd. Then spies the Christian near. With awe 
He pauses at the human form and face. Then curbs 
And sidelong moves half crouched, with mane erect. 
And glaring, fiery eye and naked teeth, 
And curling tongue, and chilling guttural growl, — 
And roars and springs — But meets the opposing lance. 
The victim slips aside. Again he springs. 
Again he meets the lance. His prey escapes. 
Though bruised and gashed with deadly teeth and clawp. 
And blood replies to blood, and mingles on the sands, 
The blood of Christian and the blood of brute. 



Satan Chained, 213 

The wliile the frenzied throng bestun the ear 
With wild tumultuous shouts. — Oh ! Kome ! this blood 
Shall be required a thousand thousand fold ! 
Your sons shall bleed, your daughters fail' be led 
Away to shame ; jomt mould'ring ruins shall 
Attest your sin throughout all future time ! 

The fight proceeds, with doubtful scale. And teeth 
And claws besmeared with blood, and lance contend. 
Now strength is ebbing out. At length one spring. 
One dire convulsive spring, and thrust, and both 
Are locked in death ! The spirit of the brute. 
The soul and spirit of the man now ooze 
From out those wounds. The flesh lies quivering with 
The last of life ; now less and less till all 
Is still. The heartless crowd retire refreshed. 
Unmindful of the debt they yet shall pay. 

Thus died the martyr in the days of Kome. 
But not by beasts alone, but tortures worse ; 
By dungeons drear, by hunger, and by fire. 

See yonder garden planned by nicest skill. 
With groves, and w^alks, and terraces, of green. 
Of living green, and fringed with richest flowers : 
And fruits of every clime on bending trees ; 
And birds of every plume and every song. 
And bursting fountains, sparkling m the sun ; 
"While fish of gold and silver scale besport 
Below. The vine is there, the olive and 
The palm ; and every wish that every sense 
Could crave. And near, a princely palace heaves 
Its massy walls, with pillars high, and frieze, 
And porticoes, adorn'd. The chisel there 
Has done its work, and art has spent its skill. 
The pile majestic stands, and like a prince 



214 Satan Chained, 

With brow serene and grave, o'erlooks the whole. 

How rich ! a kind of paradise let down 

From Heaven, The shadows fall ; the sultry day 

Is gone ; and lo ! the gates are choked with throngs 

Of coming guests, to catch the breeze, regale 

The eye, and breathe the Eden-fragrance of 

The hour. A thousand hghts now blaze around. 

And here and there a cone of flame is seen. 

The sight is magic. Doubly decked and rich 

Each tree, and vine, and flower appears. The fish 

Renews his gold, and Iris there spreads out 

Her gorgeous wings ; and gems of every hue 

The fountain showers. Now friend meets friend i 

The laugh is heard ; the shout goes up ; and all 

Is merry as a bridal scene. — Alas ! 

"Within each cone of flame a Christian dies ! 

There, — chained, and staked, and smeared, and fuel-girt 

And gagged, — he burns ; and lights the garden of 

His king. — Thua Rome filled up the measure of 

Her sin. 

And yet the word stayed not, but grew, 
A power within, that could not be repressed ; 
And outward worked, and promise gave, in time 
To overs weep the world. " In time." How long I 
Yes, Man-of-sui must have his day ; and teach 
A lesson to a sinning world. Time sweeps 
Along ; and still the contest fiercely reigns. 
The shepherds now must fall, and one by one 
They feel the hand of power. They bleed, or He 
In chains, or flee to savage wilds, to let 
The storm go by ; nor guard from grievous wolves 
The trembling fold. — Ah ! why such suff'ring for 
The flock of Christ ? God knows ! Was it for us ? 



Sataii Chained. 215 

A lesson to all future time ? Did they 

For us thus sow the seed ? and now we reap 

The harvest of their toils, then' tears, their blood ? 

" Bat he thou faithful unto death, and thou 

" Shalt have a crown of bfe." 

The storm at length 
Is o'er. The pagan temples fall, and all 
Is safe, and Caesar takes the side of Christ. 
The church now reigns ; the world is at her feet, 
And homage pays. " Is safe." No, no ! not safe ; 
For now another trial waits her course ; 
The favor and the flattery of men. 
And Man-of-sin did not forget to seize 
On this, his chance, to work her fall. She now 
Is wedded to the state : and offices 
Of wealth, and trust, must come through her. — And will 
She hold her simple faith, and life, her trust 
In God, and readiness to do his will ? 
Or be seduced away from him, and turn 
To earth, and seek her good therein ; and thus 
Forget her strength, and be like Samson when 
His hair was shorn ? Alas, for her ! She went 
The downward road, though step by step, till all 
Was lost. — She should have been a city set 
Upon a hill ; a light to hght the world. 
But all was dark. A darkness that that could 
Be felt. The hope of earth was gone again ! 
And moral midnight reigned from pole to pole. 
Appalling, starless ; and no hope of dawn ! 

Ah, no ! there was a spot, now here, now there. 
Where light was not extinct, a feeble star, 
That glimmered, and that shot a scanty ray 
Across the dark and dread hoiizon, that 



216 Satan Chained, 

But served to show the gloom, the blackness of 
The hour. — The word of life was closed, and Christ 
Dethroned ; and priests ascend his seat ; and men 
Were made to seek salvation at the hands 
Of men. They bought it at a price ; the rich 
Obtained, the poor were sent away ; and men 
From men — O shame ! — bought hcence for themsel-^es 
To sin. 

'Twas done. She could no lower fall. 
But oh ! to trace her downward course, the muse 
Declines the task ; save but to say, 'twas not 
Achieved at once. The strife was long and fierce. 
The choicest spirits earth could boast withstood 
Her growing sins. They preached, they watched, they 

prayed ; 
And then for this poured out their precious lives. 
But wolves were there ; they lodged within the fold, 
And preyed, by night, by day, upon the sheep. 

Now ,Man-of-Sin had reached his hopes ; the field 
Was all his own. He sat upon a throne 
With mitre on his head and staff in hand, 
And Latin on his tongue, and cross upon 
His breast ; and at his feet the nations bowed, 
O blasphemy ! and called him " Lord our God.'' 

His mark must be on all ; none dared to buy, 
None sell, except in virtue of his name. 
He made the faith of all ; and ruled the words 
Of men, and e'en their thoughts. What he allowed 
They thought ; what he forbade they uttered not. 
He cast out knowledge from the face of earth ; 
And bound the human mind in chains, in chains 
Of adamant, and loud proclaimed abroad. 
That " ignorance the mother was of true 



Satan Chained, 217 

Devotion ;'' bade the world believe, believe 
Not ill the Lord, nor in his word, but in 
The church ; and worship saints and images, 
And bow before a cross of wood or stone, 
A.nd homage pay to relics, made for sale ; 
And rate their virtues — not by faith in God, 
And in his holy word sent forth to man, 
And in the hving of a blameless life, 
And deeds of love — but by the prayers they said. 

And when they sinned, e'en sins of deepest dye, 
The priest stepped in, and made all clean again. 
And thus spake peace where God had spoken none. 

The heart was left untouched, unquickened, dead 
In sin ; the sinners, still in guilt ; and yet 
Deceived : for who but God can pardon sin, 
And that from faith in Christ, Avith penitenca 
Of heart ; and not from faith in priest or church, 
With penance done ? 

Now years on years revolve ; 
And Man-of-Sin holds grasp upon the world ; 
Nay, holds the keys of Heaven, the keys of Hell. 
He locks, and who can ope ? He opes, and who 
Can shut ? His nod is law ; his frown, the wrath 
Of God ; and kings obey, and peoples fall 
In prostrate worship at his feet. His throne 
Is firm, an everlasting rule ; and Hell 
Is now triumphant in the earth. What more 
Could Satan wish, except that he himself 
Had done the deed direct, direct instead 
Of indirect by Man-of-Sin ? But this concerned 
Himself alone, for all the rest preferred 
It as it was, lest Satan's pride should gain 
Its former height, and they be galled anew 



218 Satan Chained, 

By prestige won. 

Now Man-of-Sin returns, 
And makes report. A saint in mein he's still. 
All deyils start again as he appears ; 
(For deyils hate all saints with perfect hate :) 
And now can scarcely keep theii' seats. They ache 
To rush and rend him into shreds : till they 
Descry his hands, his hands to elbows red 
"With human blood. They rest. They knew 'twas he ; 
■'Twas Man-of-Sin, and not a saint of God. 

" All's well on earth,'' said he. " We hold the ^hole. 
" "We're safe. We've won the priesthood, cast out Christ 
" From rule, and yet they see it not : but think 
" He governs yet. They battle strong for him ; 
" But 'tis in fact for me. 'Twas done so still 
" They knew it not. Ah, yes ! a few ; but what 
" Were they ? Yf e crushed them as the worm 
" Beneath the font, or drove them from the haunts 
" Of men ; and seized then- lands, and flocks, and herds, 
" And gave them to om' pious ones : bewhile, 
" They starved, and froze, in deserts lone, and T^41ds 
" Of mountain tracts. We call them heretics, 
" And brand them all. The parents and the babes 
" We slay alike ; and make men think 'tis work 
" Achieved for God. 'Tis thus we cheat them in 
*' The ' holy church.' We shp the ' saints of God ' 
*'' (So called on earth, but what they are we know ) 
" Like dogs of war, and keep the race, the race 
" Heretic few and far between. And yet 
" 'Tis toil. They spiing up ev'rywhere where e'er 
" The ashes of a martyr fall, like teeth 
" Of dragons sown ; and faggots, and the rack, 
" Can scarcely keep them down ; and nothing saves 



Saian Chained^ 219 

" Us but the Scriptures hid. O ! that we could 

" Destroy that book. But, ah ! we lack the power. 

" We can conceal for most ; 'tis all that we 

" Can do. We make it penal to possess 

" The W^ord, and j-et it is possessed. We make 

*' It heresy to read, and yet 'tis read. 

" And, what alarms us more than aU the rest, 

" A way has been devised to give it wide 

" And wider range. No more the pen is used, 

" But types, to bring it forth. And hence, where one 

" Was made, now thousands spring to light." 

A shiv'ring came o'er Man-of-Sin ; his teeth 

Then chattered, and his knees together smote. 

And paleness sat upon his face, which ran 

The round of Hell. For nought so dreaded there 

As types, instinctive clread ! " But still," said he, 

" We hold, and with due care shall ever hold 

" The reins of power on earth. The son of man 

" Shall never gain a foot-hold there again. 

*' If types must come, we'll use them for ourselves. 

" We'll pubhsh fables ; we'll corrupt the Word 

" In text, and make it null and void. At least 

" We'U break its force by commentaries giv'n ; 

" Besides, the masses shall not have its use. 

" W^e'll give it disrepute ; and write it down 

" A dang'rous book ; and safe for priests, and priests 

" Alone, whose holiness cannot be marred 

" Thereby. And, then, traditions, we'll invoke 

" Their aid, and set them off against the Word 

" Of God. W^e'll get up miracles, to prove 

" Us true. The lame shall walk, the bhnd shall see, 

" And rehcs shall perform the whole, a bone, 

" Or ashes of a saint, declared. O fools ! 



220 Satan Chained. 

" We'll thus secure them, and befool them out 

* Of Heav'n." — And here a laugh went round, that men 

With reason blest, and far enthroned above 

The brute, should be thus caught, thus caught with chaf£ 

" The MORALS of the church are ours. No more 
" She draws them from the hated word, but from 
" The ' schools.' We even make them new, to suit 
" The time. ' No faith with heretics ' is in 
" The code. She promises — her promise breaks. 
" She swears, swears solemn, swears upon the Word 
" Of God, the evangelists, then breaks her oaths* 
" Unbinding as a rope of sand ; and all 
" Is right, because 'tis for the church's good. 
*' In fine, the end there justifies the means." 
— And here another laugh went round again. 
" Yes, all on earth is safe. We search their hearts^ 
" The secrets of their very souls And thus 
" We root out heresy ere it begins. 
" 'Tis called auricular confession, and 
" It binds in chains of adamant ; deceives 
" The soul ; corrupts the priest ; and opes the ^ate 
" For ev'ry open, ev'ry secret sin. 

" We thus are sure. Our eyes are ev'rywhere. 
" We search out all. Whate'er we wish to know 
" We know ; what wish to hide, we hide ; for mouth 
" Of ail is dumb at our command. We have 
" ' Forbid to marry ' " " This affords our cause 

" Uncounted good." And here a blush o'erspread 

The throng. Yes, devils blushed at thought of deeds^ 

Of shameless deeds produced thereby. O sin ! 

O sin thus caused, unknown to man save those 

In crime, but which the judgment shall in full 

Eeveal! What mean those massy walls? What mean 



Satan Chained. 221 

Those gates and bars if all is right within ? 
And why should females there be kept for hfe ? 

" But I must tell,'' continued Man-of-Sin, 
" A triumph now. You've heard of Huss, John Huss." 
All devils nod assent. " His heresy 
" Was rank ; his face was flint ; lie feared nor man 
" Nor Hell. He laughed us all to scorn. From him, 
" Alas ! contagion spread on ev'ry side ; 
" A very death-spot where his face was seen ; 
" And he must die ; must die, or we must fall. 
" We sought his life ; but he eludes, now here, 
" Now there. At length we summon to appear, 
" And show his cause. But he declines, unless 
*' He s safe. He is assured of that. And hence, 
" Appears. But, in our hands, he's ours. We scorn 
" The promise made. 'Tis for the church. We seize, 
" We judge, and we condemn, and lead him to 
" The stake. The faggots make short work, and he's 
" No more ; and we are safe again. We should 
" Have joy untold, did not a terror hold 
" Our souls, and cause misgivings day by day. 
" Alas ! at midnight's hour, indeed 'tis said, 
*' We even know, that lights are seen about 
" That spot ; and voices heard ; and e'en the fire 
" Is yet unquenched. The rains have come, the snows 
** Have pressed, and lo ! the embers smoulder still." 
— Here Satan paled, and Man-of-Sin grew faint 

And sank to earth. The ashes of John Huss I 

The fire that smoulders there, shall never be 
Extinct ; but shall in time be raised to flame. 
And start a burning that shall sweep the world. 
O, hope ! shall burn up all the chaff, the works 
Of Man-of-Sin, his crosses, altars, racks, 



222 Satan Chained. 

His temples, relics, images, and e'en 
His tlii'one itself, his a-svful seat where erst 
He sat, the dread of all the earth, and ruled 
The nations with an iron rod. His smoke. 
Like that of Sodom shall ascend and cloud 
The Heavens. T^at day shall come. Another Huss 
Shall rise, and God-sustained shall baffle all 
His plans, shall lay his wickedness abare 
To earth, shall show him up to men, the scoff 
Of all the world ; and he shall gnash his teeth. 
And call on kings for aid ; but all in vain ; 
Shall feel the sceptre shake within his hand ; 
And hear dismayed the moaning of the ground 
Beneath his feet ; and see the lurid heavens 
Portending coming storm, the day of wrath ! 
And he be impotent to shun the hour. 

O Babylon ! that hold'st the church in thrall, 
The pious ones that have not bowed the knee ; 
Ah ! thou shalt fall as Bab3ion of old, 
That held the anoient church in bondage drear. 
Thy palaces, like hers, become a waste ; 
Thy halls, hke hers, untrod ; and silence brood 
O'er all thy wide domain. The owl shall biuid 
Her nest within thy walls, the bittern woo 
Her mate, and dragon reptUes lodge where son^f 
And dance went round. 



END OF BOOK EIGHTH. 



Satan Chained, 223 



BOOK IX. 



Time sweeps from midnight's hour. 
And day is drawing near. A flush is seen 
In eastean sky ; but doubtful if 'tis day, 
Or cheat of sense. The eye is strained, and strained, 
To make it sure. A streak at length is seen ; 
And hope is horn. The day is broken which 
Shall never close, though darkness linger long. 

Within a cloistered cell a monk is seen. 
Bewildered, pale, and trembling, not from fear 
Of man, but from unquiet mind. He'd found 
The Word of God, the priceless Word, there chained 
Lest some should take it thence. He turns its leaves 
And reads, now here now there ; and startles at 
The truths he finds revealed. — He knows no rest 
By day, by night. The priest steps in to give 
KeHef by pard'ning sin. But no avail. 
Nor priest, nor all the moral lumber Kome 
Can bring, can cast a sunshine on that dark, 
Benighted soul. He finds at length a friend, 
Instructed in the Word, who knows the way 
Of life, salvation gained hy faith, and not 
By loorks. And he believes, believes and finds 
Remission of his sins. — The shadoAvs fiee. 
And light springs up ; and he is saved, is saved 



224 Satan Chained. 

By faith in the atoning Lamb ; and not 

By penances performed. — How simple was 

The way ! He went to God direct, and not 

Through pope or priest. What he had found must now 

Be spread abroad. The Woed is now his book ; 

And built up strong therein he pubHshes 

Abroad its gracious truths : which fall upon 

The hungry crowds like manna from the heaTens. 

He spake as of authority, and not 
As modern priest or ancient scribe. The Word 
Had life, and caused the dead to hve. The priest 
With rage perceived his mass neglected, and 
His gains decreased ; and more, e'en ridicule 
Upon him heaped ; his blessing scorned ; his keys 
All useless by his side, with which he erst 
Could open Heaven or shut. His licenses 
To sin, like shopworn wares upon the shelves, 
Xiay by, and none poured coin upon his lap 
Therefor. " This must be stayed, or all is lost. 

" The giant heretic must be o'erthrown : 
" Nor left to draw the world to him. He must 
*' Be brought within om* reach, and we must deal 
" With him, as erst with Huss. He came at call, 
Nor stood alone as Huss. His friends were there. 
And, brave, deserted not as those of Huss ; 
And he immortal till his work was done. 
The conclave met. He answers from the Word 
Of God. But what care they ? the Word of God 
Is naught to them, to men corrupt ; who seek 
Not truth, but would their own iniquitous 
Designs achieve. Their dogmas old must be 
The test. But, right or wrong, the man must fall. 
The church demands it, make then no delay. 



Satan Chained. 225 

The church ! the church, then, makes this bloody call ! 
O tell it not in Gath ! let not the streets 
Of Askalon receive the sound ! The church 
Calls loudly for the blood of men. By day, 
By night they plot to seize their prey. But seemed 
Withheld, as those were curbed who seized and led 
The fearless Jesus to the hill-brow, there 
To cast him down. But passing- from them, he 
Escaped. So our young heretic eludes 
Their grasp. His time had not yet come. He preached 
The Word ; he gave it to the masses in 
Their tongue, and thereby gave to Man-of-Sin 
A wound that never, never shall be healed. 
The flame, now kindled, spreads from land to land, 
And light and warmth imparts to earth. The long, 
Long shadows flee, the frosts of ages melt. 
And earth gives promise of an Eden new. — 

He died ; and left his glorious work a boon 
To future times. But Man-of-Sin still Hved, 
Nor quit the field ; but battle joined with hope, 
How vain ! with hope, to overcome. His eyes 
Were held. He saw not on the wall the hand 
That wrote, nor read the hues so plainly traced 
Thereon. Yes, he must fall, but fall not he 
Without a struggle fierce. The ground shall all 
Be faught, and inch by inch. And he will still 
Deceive. Like Proteus of old will change 
His form ; assume all shapes to suit the times. 

In monarchies he'll be for monarchies. 

The one-man pow'r, as suited best for his 

Designs, to rule the consciences of men. 

And check defections, and impatience of 

His sway. But in republics, and the hope 
15' 



226 Satan Chained. 

Of change extinct, he'll be for them ; and plead 
Their cause. But still the church should be above 
The whole, should shut out pubhc light, and keep 
The Word of God concealed ; nor suffer it 
In learning's halls to raise its voice, and be 
The guide of men. And ruhng she must sit 
In state, and glitter in the trappings of the world. 

Ah ! how unlike to him, who, meek and low 
Of heart, taught humbleness to all mankind. 

O muse, declare how martyrs bled in this 
Great war ; this last convulsive death-throw made 
By Man-of-Sin. The years were long, the field 
Was red, the masses had the Word, and this. 
The hope of earth, must seal his fate. He felt 
His time was short ; and full of rage, hke the 
Apocalyptic dragon, came down fierce 
To be avenged on men. His sword and torch 
Saught ev'ry land, and Gaul gave hecatombs 
To his demands ; and Albion scourged poured out 
Her richest blood. The blade, the faggot, and 
The rack, and flood, performed theh work, upheld 
By bloody power : till hearts grow sick, and foes 
Kelent. What land where Christ was named, felt not 
The scourge where Man-of-Sin could reach ? The Isles 
Were smitten, and Europa groaned. Renowned, 
O Smithfield, fur the death of saints ! thy soil 
Has drunk their blood. And thou shalt yield it at 
The judgment day ; and thou, O Rhone Iwhose wave 
Has born the martyr's dust and shed it in 
The sea, shalt be a mtness swift when God 
Shall square accounts ; and ev'ry prison-house. 
And cave, and rack, and chain, shall have a tongue 
In that disastrous day. 



Satan Chai7ied^ 227 

But time moves on ; 
And truth gains ground, though still the battle high. 
Th' opposing pow'rs give way ; and Man-of-sin 
Is pressed on every side ; and ere aware 
Is shorn of haK his strength. Whole lands reject 
His sway, and hold him in contempt ; and bid 
Defiance to the thunder of his power. 

Brittania casts him out, and Gaul o'ersweeps 
His realm, and fills his seat with darkness ; and 
Displays to all the world that he is sure 
Not God, and his Anathemas but wind. 
And when his sacred person was immured 
In prison walls, he lacked the power to move 
The bars, much less to open Heav'n or Hell. 
The conqu'ring Gaul, presumptuous, laid his hands 
Upon him and still hved ! The charm was broke ; 
The world then, laughed. His prestige waned from that 
Sad day ; and now at length his hour has come ; 
And like a child chastised and fuU subdued, 
In this our year of eighteen sixty-two, 
He whines, and looks up piteously for aid. 
Yes, he whose awful word was law, who ope'd 
His mouth to cui'se, and none could bless ; who blessed, 
And none could curse ; who put up thrones, and cast 
Them down ; who trod upon the necks of kings, 
And made them prostrate bow, and kiss his feet ; 
— Now calls out piteously for aid, with sighs 
And abject tears. O fallen Babylon ! 
Remembrance of thy ways has come before 
The throne ; thy yoke is broken, and thyself 
Despoiled ; and soon thy desolation shall 
Be full, and thou shalt be of things that were. 
And then a shout shall rend the skies, a shout 



228 Satan Chained, 

And Alleluia ring from pole to pole ; 
And those that loved thee and grew rich within 
Thy walls, shall stand aloof and weep, to see 
Thy smoke, thy burning reach to heaven ; alas ! 
Such riches, come to naught, such power, despoiled ! 

Yes, let her fall. Let her who took the sword 
Now feel its power ; let her who captive led 
Be captive now ; and deal her double as 
The portion of her cup. 



END OF BOOK NINTH. 



Satan Chained, 229 



BOOK X 



But Satan had 
Been ill at ease while Man-of-Sin held sway 
On earth. At first, and thence for centuries, 
He'd had but httle doubt of his success. 
But since the deadly wound that Man-of-Sin 
Had felt from recent heretic ; and from 
The Word of life, unhid, and broad-cast thrown 
O'er many a land, he read, sagacious more 
Than wont, that Man-of-Sin might yet be spoiled 
Of sway, and driven back in shame to Hell. 
Lest that should hap, and he be caught, he planned 
In time to ward the blow. He made a call 
Imperious for the states to meet. They met, 
In multitude beyond all thought of man. 

And Satan took his seat, and sat sublime 
As wont above the rest. His starry crown 
Flashed hving hght. His robes resplendent shone ; 
And on his thigh reposed his trusty swoid, 
That awed the miUions down, and stifled all 
Complaint. 

The noble peers of his vast realm 
Were ranked on either hand, on seats less high, 
But eminent above the crowd ; while these 
The lesser gods fill all the space below, 
Immense, a wondrous throng. — All silent wait 
The council to begin. The cause was hid, 



230 StU'in C% lined. 

Bat shrewd conjecture pointed up to earth. 

Then Satan rose and spoke. " My lords npon 
" My right, and left, and yon, my firm supports, 
" That fill this mighty space/ (in voice so clear. 
That all to utmost verge distinctly heard, 
And shrunk aghast at its imperious tones. 
InstLnctive horror ! as is felt when climbed 
To some high tower, one casts his eye beneath. 
And shudders at the appalling depth below,) 
*' Our cause on earth is not beyond a doubt, 
" Though Man-of-Sin has wonders wrought, and ground, 
" For centuries gone by, beneath his heel, 
" His glorious iron heel, the real church, 
" The hated church of God. But she's not dead. 
" She yet may rise, to our dismay ; and push 
'* Us from the earth. What mirth would be in Heaven, 
*' If, after all our toil and hopes on earth, 
*' We should be fotmd to fail ! It must not, can 
" Not be ; and yet it will, I fear, unless 
" Some new device is planned, some scheme to check 
" The light or neutralize its power : which, else, 
" Shall shine and over-sweep the world. 
" The church, the church of God, fno other church 
"I mean) must be o'erthrown. But how? Some new 
" Deceit, if aught avails, must be our hope. 
" Our former wiles she knows, and ne'er wiU fall 
" By them again. But let us move in time ; 
" And mnke asstirance doubly sure. So, if 
" Our Man-of-Sin should fail, we shaU be in 
" The field, all ready to sustain our cause. 

" But what shall we attempt ? Let all be free 
" To speak." 

Then Nisroch rose, and " deemed it best 



Satan Chained. 231 

" To try return to idol worship once 

" Again ; perhaps the church could be seduced 

" By this." But Satan mild reminded him, 

" That Man-of-Sin had that already in 

" The field ; that in his church men bowed to wood 

" And stone in shape of Virgin, babe or cross ; 

" And homage paid to rehcs as to God. 

" What could be done with that, be sure he'd do ; 

" But something more efficient must be tried. 

" Toils old will hardly take a second time." 

Then rose Anammelech, and he would give 
Her, surely give her fame. " But Man-of-Sin 
" Has tried that too : with good success thus far ; 
" But she might learn to shun that snare, if laid 
" A second time. Some new, some new device, 
" Be sure, must be our care ; and take her off 
" Her guard." Adrammelech then thought 
The lust of worldly power would draw her off 
From God. " But Man-of-Sin has that," was then 
Rephad. " The way to worldly power is through 
" The church ; and kings and emperors but reign 
" By her high leave. They bow submissive at 
" Her feet ; and own her sovereign sway." 

Then Mammon rose, a god of wide repute. 
If not of high respect. He stood in view, 
With sharp and piercing eye, but shop-worn in 
His mein, and thin and hungry ; with his hands 
In clutching mood, as if to make a grasp 
At something in his reach ; and those near by 
Removed, instinctive care ! lest something should 
Be missed before the session closed. His brow 
Was creased with thought, and in his face, her Hues 
Arithmetic had furrowed deep. He spoke 



232 Satan Chained. 

With slow and well selected words, as if 

From caution in the choice of means. He spoke : 

" Your Holiness,'' said he, to Satan on 

The throne. The throne ! ah ! who can full reveal 

The splendors of the throne of Hell ? For there 

The artist had bestowed his utmost hand. 

Great Vulcan, once, in purer days, weU known 

In Heav'n by wondrous works of skill and taste. 

Bewildering to the sense whenever scanned 

By spirit eyes ; but now the architect 

Of Hell ; his goodness gone, but still his taste 

And skill not lost. He wrought the whole. The mines 

Were searched and spoiled of gold and richest gems. 

And rainbows quarried from the living rock. 

From such he raised the structure, firm, but light 
In mould. The architraves, the pillars, base. 
And caps, and frieze, were in proportion due. 
The pavements were mosaics, such as earth 
Knows not ; the seat, of burnished gold ; the front, 
Of silver and of rainbow stone, reheved 
By drapery of tyrian dye, and stiff 
With ev'ry stone and pearl of gorgeous hue. 

Nor less in richest taste the canopy 
Above ; which hung festooned with skill 
Untold. Here Satan sat, as kings are wont 
To sit ; all lovely to the sight ; but vile 

Within, and rotten to the core. Said he, 

Said Mammon, with his usual choice of words, 
" Your HoHness well knows that one, one trait 
" Marks man distinct from other living things, 
*' The love of gain. He loves to see his stores 
" Increase, his lands enlarge, and feel that he 
*' Has goods laid up for years to come. And hence 



Satan Chained, 233 

" He sits up late, and wakes betimes, and toils 

" His body down to very bones ; and this, 

" Not simply for his meat, and drink, and wear ; 

" But from the love, unsated love of more, 

" For more than he can use ; and hence he scours 

" The world ; he braves the flood, the tropic fires, 

*' And arctic frosts ; and dives beneath, and digs 

" The bowels of the earth ; and tramples on 

*' The laws of God and man ; and sells his soul, 

" And all his hopes of Heav'n for worldly gain. 

" Can we not reach her here ? I mean the church ; 
" And set a snare for her unwary feet ? 
" But how, how shall the thing be done ? Methinks 
" 'Tis in the scope of Hell, to lay the plan 
" To draw her off from God by worldly gain. 
Let some more shrewd devise and state his views." 
He sat ; and none the silence broke ; though all 
Were pleased, yet none could see the w^ay to reach 
The end. All eyes were fixed on Satan ; and 
They saw a twihght in his face, as if 
Some new and happy thought had struck his mind. 

He rose. " I think," said he, " I see the way 
" To reach the end by means just now proposed. 
" The love of gain has, true, been tried before, 
" And with success. But now I see a plan 
" To cheat her wdth the love of gain anew, 
" And make her think 'tis love of God and man. 
" And this has always been, as well you know, 
" A keen dehght to us, to see her do 
" Our work, when she was sure, the while, that 'twas 
" The work of God. My plan is this. You know 
" A world, a western world has late been found 
" On earth by daring Genoese ; and that 



2o4: 8atan Chained, 

*' It promises to be the home of man, 

" Of millions of the race of man ; and there, 

'' Methinks, our deadly foe in Heav'n intends 

*' To plant his chm.'ch, and set her free from us, 

" And all the snares we spread in older lands. 

" Yes, he intends to make her there mayhap 

" A City on a hill, far, far removed 

" From Man-of-Sin. Now we will see to dim 

*' Her hght, and make her good to evil turn. 

" A horde of Bible fools have crossed the main, 

" Called Pilgrims, and have taken foot-hold there, 

" And cavahers in sunny-south ; and both 

" Are spreading wide ; and promise give of large 

*' And larger growth. Before their wave the beasts, 

" The savage beasts retire, the forests fall, 

" And goodly fields, mth harvests crowned, dehght 

" The eye. A kind of Eden there may grow 

" In time. But let us mar it as we marred 

" The first ; and let us seize their piety 

" To do the deed ; and harness it, and make 

" It di*aw our car." — And here a smile went round 

On all, though devils doubted if the thing 

Could be. " You know," said he, " across the flood 

" From where they dwell, the Afiic shores extend. 

" The people there are simple, weak, and some 

" Say wicked. They are heathen ; and my plan 

'•' Is this : to make an effort to convert 

" Their souls." — All devils started to their feet. 

And thought that he was mad. — " Be cool," said he, 

" You have not heard the whole. We shall not send 

*' The Gospel out to them, and leave them in 

" Their native vales, and spicy groves, and 'mid 

" Their friends, and homes, and brothers, sisters, wives, 



Satan Chained. 235 

*' And fathers, mothers, loves, and children dear. 

" O no ! 'twould cost too much, and Mammon thinks, 

" Forever thinks of cost. But I intend 

*' To have them brought to Western shores, where light, 

" And life can be acquired, and Gospel truth 

" Be learned ; and give them pious masters, who 

" Shall care for them, since they've been purchased with 

" A price. These masters dear shall teach them love, 

" And lash the lesson through then* heathen skins ; 

" Shall teach them honesty by taking all 

" Their toil unpaid. Shall teach them truthfulness 

" By telling them that they were made to serve ; 

" In fine, shall give them lessons in the rule, 

" The golden rule, by doing unto them 

" As they would not that men should do to them 

" In turn." The devils laughed ; and saw that he. 

That Satan, had outdone himself in this 

His shrewd concocted plan. They voted it 

At once ; and voted Mammon master of 

The field ; a missionary, sent to earth ; 

The first that ever went from Hell, to care 

For souls, 

O Africa ! what griefs await 
Thee now. 'Twas done.— "What direful ills were hers ! 
Such ills ! What wars, what deaths, what plund'rings and 
What pangs of fathers, mothers, brothers, for 
Their loved ones lost, torn ruthless from their arms 
By Christian hands, and scourged, and manacled, 
And packed in pestilential holds, and swept 
Across the main in pirate ships ; and chafed 
And sickened by the rolling waves ! What deaths 
Among thy simple children in their path 
Of midway ocean ! down whose awful depths 



23G Satan Chained, 

Their wasted limbs have sunk ; and whose broad floor 
Is thick o'erspread from land to land, with their 
Unsevered bones! an army of the dead! 
Unseen ; a vast subaqueous Golgotha ; 
In multitude beyond what earth e'er saw ; 
Composed and waiting for the judgment day : 
The giant fi'ame that battled strong, and scorned 
To be a slave, then leaped the deck ; the maid 
And striphng slumber there ; the brother and 
The sister side by side, ejected when 
Their life was done ; and on her bony chest 
The mother's arms still clasp her fleshless babe, 
Forgetful of those tiny hands, those eyes, 
Those sable lips, that once gave such dehght : 
Yes, " waiting for the judgment day,'' for they 
Have tales to tell. Their time shall surely come. 

The Uving far from home bemoan their lot. 
The whip is heard from day to day, the sigh 
Suppressed, the stifled groan ; the soil is wet 
With tears, enriched with blood, and hope is dead, 
And manhood crushed from out their very souls. 

The years roll on, and Afric's shores still bleed. 
The burdened ocean groans ; the winds lament, 
And all, but man, has sympathy for man. 

The sable race is thronging in the West ; 
And marts are full, and trade is brisk. Their toil 
Brings wealth to many a sumptuous lord, and in 
The market they are sold, as beasts, to swell 
His store. — O Mammon, direful child of Hell ! 

'Twas wonderful ; the true philosophy 
Had come at last, to make a nation rich, 
And save a heathen race. All scrambled for 
The prize. All felt unheard-of zeal for souls. 



iSata7i Chained. 237 

They bought, they sold, they bred for sale, they drove 

Afield for daily toil ; they catechised, they prayed, 

And mingled sweetly things of earth and Heav'n. 

And when the ship arrived, or coffle-gang 

Had come, their zeal was then renewed, they felt 

A yearning for these precious ones. The saint 

Then bought, the sinner bought, the matron from 

Her prayers, and e'en the preacher fi'om his desk, — 

'Till none remained. Such thrift must not be lost, 

And hence another ship or coffle comes, 

Another scramble, and another heap 

Of pelf ; till angels sicken at the sight ; 

And turn away and weep. The Church, — now veered 

From out her course, — ^had left the love of God 

For love of man, and that of sable skin. 

And whom each loved he chastened oft, and hence 

Among his household gods the whip was found, 

And manacles and Bibles rested on 

The seK same shelf. And when the saint kneeled down 

To pray, the dagger gleamed beneath his vest, 

Or pistol rattled by his side, all primed 

Or capped, with deadly bullet charged. What prayers ! 

New laws now sprung to light, unheard of in 
The Draco code. Laws partial, made to meet 
The bondman's case. His wife was now no more 
His own, nor babes, nor aught he held most dear. 
The law of Heav'n was not a law to him, 
But law of man. Thus man with impious foot 
Stepped in between his God and him. The book 
Of knowledge, in this land of hght, was still 
No book to him. 'Twas locked by law. His lips 
Were sealed in courts of right ; and midst a world 
Of wrongs, of keenest, fiercest wrongs, no scales 



238 Satan Chained, 

The hand of justice held for him. His sons 

Were manacled and sold ; his daughters, dragged 

From out his hut by lustful hands, his wife 

"Was scourged before his eyes, — but no redress. 

Now mark you, if he did but raise his hand 

To save the shame, or ward the blow, then he 

Must die. His wrongs were heaped on wrongs. What year^ 

What dreary years were his ! What decades of 

Despair ! His soul grew weary, and he prayed 

For death. — hark ! what sound is that ? A shot, 

A pistol shot, and groan ! A manly form 

Of sable hue lies prostrate on the ground. 

His hands are clenched; his eyes glare fire; his teeth 

In frenzy grind; — at thought of what for years 

He'd patient borne ; and now, for some offence 

Of trivial moment, Hes there bleeding out 

His hfe, by law-protected despot slain. 

His brawny chest is heaving hard for breath ; 
His mouth, begushed with blood. — And death-hue now 
Shows ghastly on his form. — At length his nerves 
Relax. — EQs eye is glazed. — Convulsions tear 
His fi'ame. — A moment more — and step by step 
Death's shade in full steals o'er — and all is still. — 

A dog is dead ; a man for whom Christ died. 
What shrieks in yonder hut ! What stifled cries ! 
What half-concealed despaii' ! The father and 
The husband's dead ; but ah ! there's no redress. 
The land will clear its skirts ; they'll call a fast, 
And rend their garments all to tatters soon. 
And pray, and long abstain, and wipe it out. 

No funeral sermon preached, no decent rites 
Of buiial giv'n. — The worthless carcass, thrown 
Within some pit, with rubbish covered o'er, 



Sata7i Chained. 239 

Lies there uncared for and unknown. But ah ! 
It waits the dreadful reckoning yet to come ! 

Years still drag on, and decades wear away ; 
And still the millions groan beneath their load. 
The pubhc heart is more and more corrupt, 
The conscience seared, and aU is rip'ning for 
The wrath of God. What crimes are wrought, unheard, 
From year to year ! "What yillanies are brought 
To hfe, and walk the land ! What states receive 
Their wealth from sale of— not of flocks, and herds. 
And golden grain, and thousand fruits of earth. 
And wares and fabrics from the hand of toil 
And skiQ, O no, but from the sale, — O shame ! — 
Of their own sons and daughters. Yes, the men 
Who rate themselves as Chivalry, and claim 
A rank above the level of the world, 
Who scornfully look down on laboring thrift, — 
Live shameless on the plunder of the poor. 
Or means derived fi'om setting them to sale ! 
O Chivahy ! was ever wickedness. 
Was meanness ever, ever seen like thine ? 

But crimes increase. The whip, the rifle-shot. 
The knife, producing death, and deadly hunt 
With dogs upon the track of victim fled, 
— Grow stale at length, and now are quite too tame 
For public taste ; and, as a warning to 
Each sinning wretch, the stake and chain must come 
In aid. Behold it grimly stand, and bound 
Thereto the sable -victim doomed to death. 
And breathless from despair. He gazes round. 
Alone he stands 'mid hearts of steel, and none 
To plead his cause and beg the sparing of 
His hfe. The sable crew aloof like sheep 



240 Satan Chained, 

From lion in the fold, with breathless awe 

Shrink back till forced to nearer view. They stand 

Amazed, while wicked hands pile deep the food 

Of fire. The torch is phed, the smoke ascends ; 

The flame shoots forth : he shudders at 

The sight, and shrinks aghast at its approach. 

It crackles and devours, and nearer draws. 
He backward strains, and strains to utmost strength. 

And now a shriek, and clank of chain ! His flesh 
Is reached ; and then his shrieks are heard afar ! 
He begs, he prays, he tries his utmost might, 
Again, again, again ; he begs, he prays. 
He calls for water I water ! water ! grasps 
The hissing links, then casts them down ; then grasps 
Again, and lets them fall ; then grasps and lets 
Them fall again ; and tries again his strength. 
Again in vain. — His quiv'ring flesh, beset 
"With flames, is roasting while ahve ; his shrieks 
Now turn to groans; his eyeballs stare; his moulli, 
Distended wide; his features, scorched, are fixed 
In agony. The while, the jeering crowd 
Stand mocking at his pain ; and his poor kin 
Bleed silent at the heart. Dost thou believe 
In God ? Will He not be avenged on such 
A land as this ? The wretch expires ! the groups 
Eetu-e ; the one, alas ! in blackness of 
Despair ; the other, jocund and refreshed. 

And where's the Church ? Does she not raise her voice 
Against such sin ? O ! no. She holds her peace, 
Nor suffers those to speak who would. Yes, when 
A few fanatics rise to show the sin. 
And lay its hideous features bare, and call 
On her to rise and sweep it out, she falls 



Satan Chained. 241 

On them, and hunts them from her fold, and says 

" 'Tis pohtics, and that the Church must not 

■' Be found therein ; that she must care for souls, 

" And eschew, always eschew worldly strife. 

" Besides, 'tis law, and she must always heed 

" The law." — And yet she made the law, or helped 

To make it such, herself. The word of God 

She half forsook. She fasted, but she broke 

No yoke ; she rent her garments, but she left 

The burden still unbound ; she put forth tracts 

And came out strong against a thousand sins, 

— E'en some that hardly could be noted sins, — 

But this great sin, this sin of sins, this breach, 

This wholesale breach of God's whole law, that placed 

Its impious foot upon the decalogue 

And law of love at once, she left untouched. 

She labored hard for heathen, far beyond 

The sea. But O ! the heathen in her midst, 

She left unlettered, and unread in God's 

Great word. Ah ! yes, there were a few, and sparce, 

Indeed, that raised their voice with trumpet-sound 

Against that Heav'n defjdng sin. But they. 

Ah ! they were sure to be proscribed, and shunned, 

And written down disturbers of the peace. 

They prophesied, but prophesied in vain ; 

Declared the judgments of the Lord to come ; 

But who beheved ? The ruthless rabble rose 

In arms, and sought their hfe, despoiled their goods, 

And led them through the streets with ropes about 

Their necks ; and lo ! the Church looks on serene 

And calmly smiled ; so sure it was a work 

All done for God ; and almost said " their blood 

*' On us, and on our children fall.'' Ah ! yes, 
16 



24:2 Satan Chained, 

It shall upon their children fall, if not 

On them. For this great sin shall breed the clash 

Of Tvar ; impatient grown and arrogant 

From long unbridled sway. The deadly stiife 

Shall come, and she, the Church, shall give her sons. 

Her stay, her hope, on thousand battle fields 

To bleed. 

Now Mammon, satisfied to full 
Desire, repairs to Hell ; and makes report. 

The concourse was immense ; and devils thronged 
With eager ear to hear what word he brought ; 
To know how Satan's plan had gone above ; 
For they had had some inklings of the good 
Success. 

They wait for Mammon to begin. 
He rose, and bowed to Satan, and with words 
Of measured time rehearsed the whole from first 
To last. He told them of the pious care 
And labors of the Church, " That she had sent 
" Him missionary to the Congo coast, 
" And there that he had kidnapped souls, and sent 
" Them o'er the flood to be baptized and saved ; 
" Yes, saved by ship-loads in a Chi-istian land. 

" Here truth requires," he fault'ring said, '' that some 
" Had doubts, and said, in case they did not know 
" 'Twas pious work, that they should sui'ely think 
" 'Twas stealing men ; a thing forbid in God's 
" Great word. Bat I was sm-e on hand to soothe 
" Their minds, and reconcile them to what half 
" Appeared a sin. Yes, I could always calm 
" Them down, by quoting largely from the word 
" Of God. I showed them Abraham, but sm'e 
" I never hinted at the golden rule ; 



Satan Chained. 213 

" And always wielded strong Onesimus 

" And Paul.'' The devils laughed. " No matter if 

" It was unsound, if they but took the bait, 

" And thus were caught, 'twas all that we could wish. 

" Yes, yes, I have on Earth whole conferences 
" And synods, and conventions, and the mass 
" Of membership. And these I harness in 
*' At will, and make them draw my car. 
" Don't laugh ; 'tis true. But I have something worse, 
" Or rather better still. I have on Earth 
" A D. D. pampered to the full, who spends 
" His time in writing ' South Side Views ' of that 
" Most patriarchal state, to set in bold 
" Relief its beauties to a doubting world. 
" I left him at the quill, on taking leave.'' 
The devils laughed again, and shook their sides, 
To see a D. D. caught, thus nicely caught. 
And made to do their work, — Here Satan checked 
Their glee, and begged them be more soft, for fear 
They might be heard on earth ; and 'twould be learned 
That Mammon was at bottom of the whole. 
For that must not be told, but must be kept 
A secret, deep and dark ; while we befool 
The (Church, and set her up a laughing stock 
Throughout all time to come. — 

What's this ? A pause — 
Here Mammon faultered in his speech, and blushed ; 
And Satan rapped ; but Mammon still delayed ; 
And Satan rapped again, and bade him to 
Proceed and tell the whole. For sure there could 
Be nothing that should wake up shame, and cause 
A blush in Hell. But Mammon still delayed ; 
And Satan rapped, to wake the dead, and showed 



24:^ Satan Chained. 

A fire of eye that none could dao-e gainsay. 

What could it mean '? There must be something done 
On earth that devils blushed to tell. — '"Tis out 
At last, for he proceeds at Satan's stem 
Command. " "We have a law on earth/' said he, 
" Called Slave-law-fugitive." The devils start, 
And half of them involuntary hiss. 
For they had fierce remembrance of that law 
In Hell. 'Twas once enacted there, to bring 
To service due, the fleeing devil, to 
His bloody lord. This law was Satan's pet, 
'Twas more like Hell than any other law 
ITiat devils ever felt. But 'twas repealed 
At length ; though not that devils better grew, 
Or Hell was on reform ; but very shame, 
For shame they wiped it out. The angels laughed, 
They thought, and mocked them for the choice they made, 
Of such a rule, when they seceded fi-om 
The rule of God. But while it lasted, O ! ' 
WTiat scenes were witnessed in that dreadful world ! 

For they had slav'iy there, in olden time. 
The powerful overcame the weak, and brought 
Them into bondage. Then they made them serve. 
Yes, devil weak was made to serve, and cower 
To devil strong. He went, he came at his 
Command, and did his menial toils ; and kneeled. 
Or prostrate fell before him, as to ]30wer 
Of higher grade, and of superior woi-th. 
! shame, and constant laugh of Heav'n, when all 
Were devils there upon the self-same plane. 
And that exceeding low : and yet, laid claim 
To worth ; and talked of better blood, ha ! ha I 
ITnQ chivahy, the aristocracy of Hell. 



Satan Chained, 215 

He trembled at liis word, and perished at 
His fiown ; and died ten thousand deaths beneath 
The daily lash, bestowed on him through mere • 
Caprice, or malice of the devilish heart. 

And when to phrenzy driv'n, then he escaped, 
And shelter sought in other parts of Hell. 

Then Satan made a law, at once, that all 
<TOod devils should be on their guard, and watch, 
And apprehend whatever wretch might flee 
From lash an4 toil, and safe return him to 
His death again. It took at first, a kind 
Of pastime. And the scenes that then ensued 
Made thoughtful devils even weep. The wretch 
Escaped no less ; but O ! pursued by all 
The vulgar, all the elite of Hell, — haK dead. 
And shrieking, — through her wide campaigns, beset 
With yells, and hell-hounds foaming on his track. 

When caught, the marshalls judged the case, and sent 
Him back as Satan had desired. For there, 
nis ivill, not justice, holds the scale. " It took " 
At first, and devils of some fair repute 
Took office to enforce the law. But shame 
At length compelled them to retire. And how 
The pale and trembling wretch besought them to 
Eelease their hold, and let him flee ! What pleas 
He used ! What tears he shed ! that fell in drops 
Of blood, and wet the ground. But no, the will 
Of Satan must be done, his laws enforced, 
Whate'er injustice shall accrue thereby. 

They took a second thought, and said, " It marred 
*' The reputation of the land ;" though that 
Was small indeed. And here instanter all 
The marshalls, bailiffs, and the lesser packs 



246 Satan Chained. 

Eesigned ; and none were left to run the cursed 

Mactdne. It fell of course. And Satan, in 

A rage, swore loud, swore loud and long with oaths 

That frig-htened Hell, that he icould have this law 

Eevived again ; " and if too bad for Hell 

" It will not be too bad for earth. For there 

" A race will yet be born that will enact 

'' This law at my desire, and run it for 

" Some years at least, and that without the shame 

" That you have here." That day arrived in time. 

'Twas done, and Mammon blushed to tell it down 

In HeU. 

The devils, though displeased at this 
Last fact, yet, on the whole, felt high delight 
At his success ; but blamed him not for what 
He did at Satan's stem command ; for he, 
For Satan, when he speaks, must be obeyed ; 
Though 'twere the direst ills to be endui-ed. 
The " harri-carri " e'en of half the damned. 
Inflicted by their own unwilling hands, 

O Hell ! yet this, yes, this was that dread rule 
They chose instead of that of Heaven ; where God, 
Though he supreme, yet iTdes forever for 
The good of aH. They chose it ; yes, they chose 
It. Such the blindness, nay, the madness of 
The wicked heart. And men will do the same. 

And share their fate. The devils were full pleased. 

And toasted Mammon high, and voted him 
The only hope of Hell that now was left, 
(For hope in Man-of-Sin was long since dead,) 
To work corruption in the church, and bring 
Her final fall. 'Twas but a gleam of hope. 
Yet shouted they, and made the welkin ring 



Satan Chained. 247 

Be not too sure. It is indeed a shoal, 
A dangerous rock, and she may ground thereon, 
And may be wrecked ; but God may iuterpose, 
And save her in her hour of need ; and warned 
She may be proof in time against the snares, 
The strong allurements of the golden god, 
And take more thought than e'er in times gone by, 
To place her treasure where no thief, nor moth, 
Nor rust, can ever come. O haste the day 
"When she shall have her last, sad lesson learned ; 
And rise and shine, a bright and burning light. 
Throughout the world, to light the darksome sea 
Of life, the stormy wave, and guide the mariner 
With precious freight and shattered bark through reefs 
And quicksands safe to port. Thus Mammon told 
The whole, and Satan saw that he had not 
Misjudged ; that Mammon had accomplished all 
He wished, and that, beside, this care was just. 
To have a burden new upon the church. 
Lest Msm-of-Sia should fail at length, and she 
Should rise and thrust him from the earth : 
And then, unfettered, should be free to spread 

Throughout the world. But will this always weigh 

Her down ? Ah no ! She shall repent ere long, 

When wars shall spruag through this great sin, and death 

And carnage sweep o'er all the land, and steel 

Of brother drip with brother's blood ; and path 

Of foe be traced by day by corpses strown, 

And lurid flames by night, of harvests fired 

And happy homes of men . Yes, she shall then 

Eepent and cry to God. And in His might 

Shall shake forever from her soul this sin. 

This blackest, deadliest sin. 



248 Satan Chained. 

The time is near 
For her reform. Delay it not. If come 
It must, then let it come, the deadly strife. — 
'Tis here. — The trumpet sounds ; the roar of war 
Is heard ; and armies rush to combat dread 
Upon the crimson field ; and engines sweep 
Them down like grass before the scythe. Our friends 
Are there, our fathers, brothers, sons. The church 
Is bleeding now at every pore ; and sees 
Her sin as never seen before. She heard 
The bond-man cry ; she saw his tears. 
And heard the clanking of his chains ; she saw 
His babes torn ruthless from the mother's breast. 
And sold for gain ; his daughters forced away 
To toil or shame. She saw him fainting in 
The burning sun ; and quickened by the lash ; — 
Till death vouchsafed relief. She saw, she heard 
It all ; and closed her eyes and ears, and bade 
Him hush lest her own peace should be disturbed. 

'Tis now disturbed ! There's wailing heard vdthin 
Her walls ; her " first-bom " sons are slain. Ah, she 
Had long forgot, "fird pure, then peaceable." 
Her peace has gone ; and mayhap yet will come 

Her purity to bless the world. Kejoice 

Not then, too much, ye powers below. She may 

Escape, as Isr'el, after years of pain 

The dire Babylonian thrall. For God intends 

To set her on a hill, all pure and white. 

The grand attraction of a sinning world 

" In time." Be patient, Earth, that day is yet 

To come ; and wait, ye islands of the sea. 

And Ethiopia, still, still stretch your hands. — 

The time is hastening on. The signs are clear. 



Satan Chained. 249 

The captive millions feel the loosing of 

Their chains, which soon shall fall, and be of things 

That were. And Man-of-SiQ is at his last, 

Last gasp, no more a power on earth, to bind 

And loose, and pale the millions with a word, 

And make the monarch tremble on his throne. 

The bars are giving way, and pagan doors 
Are opening wide, and God's great gospel finds 
A lodgment there. Be patient, wait, the work 
Shall yet be done. 

END OF BOOK TEN. 



Satan Chained 251 



BOOK XI. 

CmtOlVOX-OGY, A.I>., 11,868. 



As at Bethesda's pool, 
The comers waited for the angel's wing, 
That swept the flood, and gave it healing power, 
So I await, not out of hope, the breath 
Of inspiration, that shaU ope to view 
The onward flow of time, that bears upon 
Its tide the works of earth 'till all at last 
Shall be out-swept to that great sea that aU 
Ingulfs. 

Ten thousand years have gone. Behold 
What change ! The stream is to the loins, the stream 
The prophet saw, the stream that flowed from out 
The threshold eastward. First 'twas scant, and reached 
But to the ankles, then, in onward flow, 
The knees, the loins, and did at length a flood 
Become, a river deep and wide, that none 
Could pass ; a river giving life to all 
Within its wave. EoU on, thou precious stream. 
O ! haste the time. 

" The stream is to the loins. 
Behold what change on earth ! The din of war 
Has ceased, and nations settled down in peace. 
The sword, the gun, the bayonet's ghttering steel. 



252 Satan Chained. 

Are now no more, save each in archives kept. 
As rehcs of the past, to show the things 
That were. The ship is freighted deep to lands 
Afar, but not with thunder armed. 
Her canvas wings or whhlwind steam, the work 
Of later art, bear goodly merchandize, 
And messages of love, and greetings kind 
Of land to land. The fortresses of earth 
Have crumbled down, and orchards bend with fniit 
And harvests wave, with golden sheen where erst 
The son was vexed wibh martial feet ; and war 
"Was learned by mihtary drill. The trade 
Is gone, the trade of war ; and all have quit 
The scene for works of peace. The Cup 
Is gone that maddened half the world, and led 
To poverty and crime ; the drug and weed 
That stupified and sapped with slow but sure 
Approach, the citadel of life, — are now 
Extinct, or growing wild like brambles in 
The hedge, or kept for mere botanic show. 
Or mediciues for such iDs as poisons cure. 
And pris'ns now are things unknown, and locks 
And bars on household doors. The armies of 
The world, that watched with jealous eyes the rights 
Of nations, and with arms of steel beset 
Their long frontiers ; the thick pohce that ranged 
Through cities day and night to keep the peace. 
And save from violence, and give repose, 
Are now disbanded, and have long been sent 
To till the soil, or bless mankind in works 
Of art. The waste of war nor draining wealth, 
Nor tearing down what peace builds up, the works 
Of man remain ; and children reap the toil 



Satan Chained, 253 

Their fathers made ; and theirs in turn their own. 
The world grows rich ; the wastes are all reclaimed. 
And science guides the plow, and tills the crops ; 
And triples all the harvests of the field ; 
And half reheves the strain of human toil. 
The world moves on. God's problem of our race 
Is working out, and highest promise gives 
Of glory greater still to be achieved. 

All this is done And yet the highest reign 
Of righteousness has not full come. But men 
Ai'e still who sin, but most in secret sin ; 
Nor dare to come to hght lest public shame 
Should crush them down. Such sentiment there is 
'Gainst evil deeds. And these will be reclaimed 
In whole or part, so strong the leaven is 
Within the lump. 

The breath of God has passed 
O'er Afric's wilds. Her forests now are gone. 
And beasts of prey. A pohshed Christian race 
Now till her soil, or ply the arts that bless 
And ornament the world. And sages there 
Are found, — of Ethiop skin, no longer now 
Despised, — of deepest lore in things germane 
To matter and to mind ; w^ho scan with eye 
Severe the mysteries of air and earth ; 
Or mark with nicest skill the moving spheres ; 
And calculate the footsteps of the whole 
A thousaud years to come. And India too, 
And far Japan, and Russ barbaric, these 
And all the tracts of earth that erst were dark, 
The habitations dread of cruelty 
And death, have felt the touch of life ; and like 
The man among the tombs, are clothed and sit 



254 SiUan Chained, 

Regenerate among the families 
Of God. But O! the struggle to attain 
This height of excellence on earth ! The war 
Was long, the waves of battle high. But truth 

And righteousness at last prevailed. The strife 

In Western world for human bondage, long 

Had ceased. The slave was free, the despots were 

Subdued. The temple they had reared, and hoped 

To make eternal, and to stand on wrong, 

The bondage of a race, in madness as 

The " gods decreed/' like Samson in his rage 

And bhndness, they had pulled upon themselves, 

And found a grave beneath. America 

Was purged ; her sin was gone ; a better race 

Then took the southern field. Where once the slave 

With trembling footsteps trod, and writhed beneath 

The lash, and poured his tears and blood, — he stands 

A man ; his wife is his, his babes are his. 

And his oppressors, like th' Egyptian host, 

O glorious change ! were heard and seen no more. 

The chui'ch was cleansed from this great sin, that weighed 

Her down, and clogged salvation's car. Yes, cleansed 

By fire and blood. Her wealth was spoiled, her sons 

Were slain, and she, in sack-cloth and in tears, 

Turned back to God. Another lesson she 

Had learned, and had it graved upon her soul, 

As with a diamond point. Thus, God instructs 

By lessons ; seldom by command direct ; 

And may the teaching never, never be 

Effaced. It shall be so. And never shaU 

A slave clank chains again within the church. 

And Satan had pei'ceived with much dismay 
That Truth and Righteousness were gaining more, 



Satan Chained, 255 

And still more strength on earth, in spite of iM 

His efforts to withstand their course ; and felt 

With all, a deep chagrin, that all his foes, 

(And who were not, e'en in that lower world ?) 

Had proof anew, that he, alas ! was not 

Almighty ; but though strong, was less, far less, 

In strength than he would have them think. They loved 

His cause, though hated him, and feared ; and so 

Were ever ready to perform his w^ill ; 

And that to utmost strength. Besides, all place 

Of honor and of trust, was from his hand, 

Th' appointing power. And whom he would he raised, 

And whom he would he cast degraded down 

To dust. Thus pohey, and hate of good 

To man, enchained them to his will. He called 

A council of his highest chiefs, to see 

What could be done to gain the foothold he 

Had lost on earth. But first he would require 

His last embassadors to make report. 

And Man-of-Sin and Mammon answered to 

The call ; but shamed and scalded to the quick. 

That their great works had tapered down to naught. 

First Man-of-Sin was ordered to the floor 
To make report. — He came with front of brass 
And names of blasphemy upon his brow, 
But old, and crippled, and effete. He paused. 
Then staggered to the stand, a beggar clothed 
In rags. Ah ! how unlike to him that went 
To earth to rule the nations there, and set 
His throne above the throne of God ! Yet he 
It was. So rich and strong in times gone by, 
And now so poor, so weak ! And he must tell 
The whole, and tell the truth ; for Satan would 



256 Satan Chained. 

■* 

Have truth to him, though Hes were otherwheres 
Their stock in trade. 

" Your hohness," said he, 
To Satan, — Satan bowed assent, — " I did 
" On earth whate'er I could, to make, and keep, 
" The church corrupt. At first the struggle was 
" Severe, but after weary centuries 
" Of toil, as all who hear me know, I cast 
*' Her down, and made her do my bidding through 
" A length of years. 1 placed my seat on high, 
" And ruled the world. And when I seemed secure 
" And saw the kings of earth before me bend, 
** And felt assurance of eternal sway, 
" The "Word of God escaped fi'om out my grasp, 
" Which I had kept to rule the nations with 
" By misinterpreting its simple text. 

" I strove to call it back, and chain it up 
" Anew. But all in vain. My stern decrees 
" Were set at naught. My bulls roared thunder round 
" The land ; but still in vain. The Word, once fi-ee, 
*' Was hke a bird uncaged. She scorns the bars 
" Again. From land to land th' infection ran ; 
" Aud men defied my power, and cast contempt 
" Upon my throne, and tore my idols down. — 
" Not all ; but still enough to give alarm, 
*' And bring: the direst fears of final fall. 

" I phed the torch, and axe, and dungeon drear ; 
*' And interdicted knowledge to the world ; 
*' I expurgated books ; and chained the press ; 
" And took all measures of severest kind, 
" To hold the ground I had ; but all in vain. 
" I even changed with times, and took now this, 
*' And now the other side, with hope still long 



Satan CImined. 257 

« 

" And longer to extend my sway. And this, 
" In part, availed ; and lengthened out, a space 
" Of years, my stay on earth. But time wears all 
" Away ; and changes e'en the very face 
' Of earth ; and so it was with me. My creed 
" Was spurned, my relics, laughed to scorn. Alas ! 
" And all my miracles, — that once so chained 
" And stupified the crowd ; as knowledge filled 
" The land, — were one by one exposed ; and I 
" At length became the laughing stock of all. 

" It seemed the angels laughed from Heaven ; nor could 
" I brook a longer stay. But in the still 
" Of night, took wing, reluctant wing, with face 
" Bedewed with tears, and heart full wrung with sense 
" Of disappointed hope, and sped myself 
" To Hell. — I've told the whole, the whole in short, 
" At your command. Your Holiness has heard. — 

" Now let me hide within some rock or cave, 
" And never, never more be seen again." 

Vain, vain desire, there is no rest in Hell : 
For devil envies devil when he seeks 
Eepose ; and chafes his soul, and wars upon 
Him without end, vindictive most to those 
Who kill their hopes. And so it was with him. 
He slipped from out the council, and betook 
Himself to flight, not unobserved ; and hence, 
Was followed by a pack of fiends, that yelled. 
And hot pursued mth fierce malicious wing ; 
Nor suffered him to rest, but searched him out 
From rock or cave, or desert lone, where'er 
He sought repose ; and with the keenest scoffs 
And sfitire, such as only devils know, 
Bescalled and blistered him through every pore, 



258 Scttan Chained. 

Till chafed to madness lie would fain resist. 
But what could he ; but one against the whole ? 

He fled again ; and j^et again ; again 
And yet again pui'sued. Kemonstrance was 
In vain, or scalding tears, that coursed adown 

His cheeks. No rest to him, nor day nor m'ght 

While sands shall run, or cycles shall be told 

Of the eternal year. He cursed on earth, 

He cursed the saints of God, now curses God 

Himself, and groans, and writhes, and gnaws his tongue 

For pain. — 'Twas thus with Man-of-Sin. No Jiope ! 

And next must Mammon make report ; and teU 
The whole, without once flinching from the truth. 
And, this, in open conclaye called, where gods. 
Where envious gods were seated round in scores ; 
And inward joyed at eveiy devils fall. 

He looked somewhat decayed, but not extinct 
Like Man-of-Sin, for he had stiU some hold 
Above ; for Mammon is the last, last god 

That shall be driven out from earth. He stood. 

" Your Holiness," — and then proceeded to 
The task ; a task indeed : for he had failed, 
Had failed in his last, greatest mission up 
To earth,—" I spread corruption in the church, 
" That part that Man-of-Sin had long since lost ; 
" That had with wondrous zeal opposed his sway, 
" And washed her hands of all connection with 
" His sins. And yet I caught her with my guile, 
" And made her draw my car, the pain of Heav'n, 
" The laugh of Hell. She stoop'd to deeds that e'en 
" Our HeU could never dream. Such sophistries 
" She used to prove them right, that almost made 
" Me blush. The taint spread right and left, and all 



Satan Chained. 259 

" Were struck, from stripling raember to the head 
" Of hoary theologian. All went strong 
" For making bondmen of a race entire. 

" But mark you, 'twas from care of souls, their long 
" Benighted heathen souls, as in my last 
" Report, was full set forth. Not aU, as said 
" Before, but those that dared oppose were few 
" And weak ; and soon apparently crushed out. 
" But strange to teU, when stricken down, they rose 
" Again and stood erect and prophesied ; 
As did the " witnesses " in 'Pocalypse. 

" At length, it must be told, we overshot 
" Ourselves. AVe boldly claimed that bondage was 
" A blessing sent from God ; and should be spread 
*' Throughout the world. "We raised sedition to 
" Attain the end ; and took the sword ; and bade 
" Defiance to the nation's laws. The strife 
" Was fierce ; we silenced every tongue ; the truth 
" We falsified ; and bathed the land in blood. 
" And, this, to make eternal, human bonds. 

" And, while the strife was high, the chains fell off ; 
" And all were free. But not till penitence 
" Had reached the Church ; and she had full confessed 
" Her sin ; and turned away from me to God. 

" And now what hope is left ? She will not be 
" Thus thraUed again. Ten thousand years have full 
" Elapsed since that sad day ; to them 'tis long ; 
** But not to us, who have eternal years 
" Upon our hands." — And here a sadness fell 
On every face, at thought of that long, long 
And weary course that never, never should 
Be run ! — ^Eternal years ! Appalling thought ! and that 
Without one distant ray of hope ! " To me 



260 Satan Chained. 

" It seems but yesterday since I was foiled. 

" But since that time, I've tried my hand, and not 

" "Without success, at least in part, to hold 

" The Church with love of gain ; such over-love 

" As would her ardor cool, and make her less 

" Efficient than she surely would have been. 

" And here again I haH o'ershot myself ; 

" For when the Church gxew rich ; indeed grew rich 

*' In part for riches sake, — with lavish hand 

" She gave, to my dismay, to spread the Word 

" Of God, and send the G-ospel through the earth. 

" He overruled, and I could not resist. 

" Tes, God compelled me to undo myself. 

" My feet, once firm, are slipping on the earth, 
" And soon my reign will be unknown to men. 
" It must, it must inevitably come." 
Yes, Mammon, Mammon soon will cease to be 
A god of earth, so long, long worshiped there. 

" If we succeed, methinks, some other god 
" Must take the field, more sly or potent than 
" The rest, a god as yet untried ; and take 
" Her unawares again if that can be. 
" For, she has had so many warnings now, 
" 'TwiU be no easy task to bring her down 
" Again. She's rising, rising, rising, and 
" Ere long, if we remit, will be a hght, 
" A sun, a heav'nly sun in blazing sheen, 
" A wonder to the world, the pride of Heav'n, 
" The everlasting shame of Hell." And here 
A dhe sensation ran through all. The whole 
Assembly, pale and flushed by turns, showed rage 
And inward spite, — unknown save in that world, — 
That could not be suppressed. But some grew sick 



Satan Chained. 261 

At heart and fell to earth. Here Mammon sat. — 

Now Satan called on Juggernaut to make 
Eeport. For he, and hosts of other gods, had long 
Held ample sway in Indian climes, and chained 
The nations to then' direful, bloody cars. 

The night was long ; a starless night. The bars 
Of that dark prison-house seemed never to 
Be broke. At length a gleam appeared, that streaked 
The sky, and day unhoped for did appear ; 
The shadows fled, the long, long gloom of death ; 
And tardy sunshine burst upon those lands. 

The cumbrous god stood up, of savage ear 
And beastly sense ; whose tastes were crash of bones, 
And dust besmeared with human gore. His f ice. 
Of hideous form, that shocked the sight, and brought 
A shudder through each devilish breast. Ho stood ; 
The representative of all the gods 
Of Ind. " Your Holiness," — and Satan bowed 
Assent agaia, — and devils kept, as wont, 
Theii' face. But each cast glance on other, that 
Too plainly fcoid their inward thoughts ; and that— • 
Though reverential to their spiritual head. 
As each was duty bound, — they felt no less 
The deep and murd'rous irony that lay 
Beneath. Yet Satan saw it not ; but half 
Believed 'twas title he deserved ; such " spots " 
Of " weakness " are in holy heads. — " 'Tis done. 
'' Our reign in eastern lands is o'er, and long 
" Since passed away as men count length of time. 
" But you will give us praise : for sure no gods 
" Of earth e'er kept the field so long as we. 
" From tower of Babel through a,n nge of years 
" We held those lands in undisputed sway ; 



262 Satan Chained. 

" Defied Jehovah's power, and barred him out 
" From that vast field of earth. He had a nook 
" Or two, 'tis true, in Western lands, and we, 
" The world beside. Our altars half were served 
" With offerings rich of human hind. We heard 
" The lovely wail of infants cast to us 
" In Ganges' stream ; and snuffed with grateful sense 
" The odors of the widow's pile ; and heard 
« Enrapped the whriek, and crash of bones beneath 
" My ponderous wheels, and saw, more smihng than 
«* The rosy lawn, the blood-stained path of my 
" Triumphal car. We revelled there from year 
" To year, from age to age, and thought, like him, 
" Like Man-of-Sin, our reign eternal ; but 
" Observe, a ship came bj, and dropped a man, 
" A man of cool demean, and purpose firm, 
" But nothing dang'rous to the eye ; and with 
" Him left the Word of God," — here nil grew pale. 
And bit their lips with rage, — " the Word of God, 
" That love of Heav'n, that hate of Hell, that seed 
" That should in time bear bitter fruit to us, 
" Like apples near that flood where Sodom stood. 
" 'Twas slow in taking root ; and we began 
" To hope the soil was adverse to its growth, 
" And that, full soon, like seed on stony ground, 
" 'Twould wither up and die. But no. The root 
" Struck down at length, the trunk arose on high, 
" The branches spread abroad ; the leaves were green, 
" The flowers, though gall to us, in truth were hke 
*' The garden of the Lord ; and ang^els snuffed 
" Them from the hill of Heaven : and, O ! the fruit — 
" And must I tell the whole ? — the fruit, alas ! 
" A harvest of despair to all the gods 



« Of Ind. The Bible, cursed, cursed book I 

« The Bible di'ove us back to Heil. And here 

«' We shall forever stay. What nope to us 

*' Is left ? For God's great Word— 1 nate it from 

«c jyjy soul,— will ever keep us from the realms 

« Of earth. No more shall victims bleed beneath ^ 

" My car ; nor mother cast her infant to 

*' The beast of Ganges' stream ; nor widow, m 

" Her phrenzy, burn upon the pile I— Our day 

" Is o'er. Alas, that hated Word hath done 

" The whole." He said : and lumbered from the stand, 

The bulky, beastly god, and mingled with 

The rest of that du-e throng. 

But what could now 
Be done ? The gods had all been foiled. The Church 
Was living still ; and living better far than e'er 
Before. And shall the field be quit, and shame 
Forever settle down upon that world ? 
It must not, cannot be. Some way must be 
Devised by which they may redeem their name, 
And wreak then' vengeance on their mighty Foe. 

The gods were silent ; vent'ring not to hint 
A plan that might with slightest ray of hope 
Give ultimate success. For none appeared 
In view. The best had all been tried, and tried 
In vain at length. And now, they felt that hope 
Had fled. They sat in silence as of death ; 
And might have learned how impotent they were. 

But some one must propose ; 'twould never do 
To be thus stunned, and make a laugh in Heav'n 
They felt, they keenly felt. And Satan felt 
Still more. But now begoaded to the quick 
He rose, and silence broke. " Our hope is not 



264 Satan Chained, 

'Extinct, believe me we shall yet succeed." — 
And tJien essayed to show a smUe for their 
Kehei ; Dut 'iwas a gnastaj smile, that shocked 
Wniie tney oeneia ; wmcn toia too well ms heart 
Had sunli witnm. — " We'll send no special god 
*' To earth ; but such as make the cnoice may go, 
*' And try their hand, and wander up and down, 
" And tempt whene'er they can, and whom they can ; 
" And thas keep down the sum of God's great fold." 

And has it come to this ? no longer suie 
Of full success, to blot from earth the Church, 
But ever thankful for the smallest boon, 
To-wit, to keep her growing numbers down, 
And make her somewhat less than she would be ? 

O Satan ! Where's thy boast, and where's the boast 
Of all the gods, alas, so often made, 
In days gone by ? Th' assembly broke, they all 
Retired ; and each, in thoughtful mood, betook 
Himself to some lone spot, where he could mourn 
His lot ; or mayhap plan some new design 
Against the Church. But they had little hope. 
For though they had their number still, their will 
Unbroken by defeat, yet she was strong. 
And stronger growing day by day. If they 
Had failed when she was weak, how could they now 
Succeed ? And still they must not yield the point. 
They were committed to her fall ; had talked 
So loud and long, had laughed at Heav'n, and mocked 
At God himself ; and filled his universe 
With promises of his defeat, that if 
They yielded and acknowledged *' whipped," 'twould be 
A sting within their souls, a worm, a death 
That never dies. When they seceded from 



Satan Chained. 265 

The rule of God they laughed to scorn the dupes 
That stayed behind : While they, the Chivahy, 
Despised the reigu of Heav'n, and sought a rule 
More suited to their worth. They promised all 
Who cast then- lot wdth them, a future far 
More glorious than Heav'n could give ; and dared 
In boastful terms to give assurance that 
Not God Mmseh, with all his ancient claims, 
Could hold in check then- tide of full success. • 

They'd had, 'tis true, or seemed to have then: way, 
They'd held the world, or most of it ; and laughed 
At angels as they stood amazed. But God 
Was neither negHgent nor weak ; but was 
In wisdom working out a problem that 
Should last forever in its grand results. 

As years and centuries elapsed, the lines 
Were drawing close and closer still, and now 
They find themselves in thrall, and struggling in 
The darkness of despair. And must they yield ? 
never, never that ! and yet they saw 
The hand upon the wall, and read thereon 
Their speedy, direful doom, O dreadful thought ! 
What shame, what burning shame they saw in store ! 

It feU on all ; and some were withered up. 
And seemed extinct ; while others were awaked 
To rage unknown before in Hell. They gnashed 
Their teeth — they tore their hair — they stamped the 

ground — 
They cursed — beyond all words to tell. They'd straight 

To earth and see what could be done.- They went. 

They first collected on an open plain ; 

Then rose with rattling wings and fiery eyes, 

And upward took theii flight wdth fury driven, 



266 Satan Chained. 

And left the confines of their Hell, and launched 
With direst venom on the bord'ring deep,-^ 
The deep, out stretched beyond all reach of thought 
'Twixt that, theu' home and God's creation fair. 

'Twas dark and dreadful, filled with direst sights ; 
That wide, unfathomable solitude ! 
But what to them ? Their nerves were fitted to 
The task. They'd seen such sights before ; for HeU 
Has fearful regions of its own. Besides, 
The inward spite of their volcanic souls. 
Would suffer no delay, no shrinkiog on 
The brink w-hatever fear might rise to drain 
Their strength, or chill and freeze then' very blood. 

They drive amain ; a darkhng host, and make 
The darkness darker still. Their wings wrought up 
A tempest as they sped ; and Silence took 
Alarm, and started from her seat, as this 
Portentous cloud went hissing by. They came 
To earth, and spread upon her coasts like swarms 
Of locusts ill the days of Egypt's fall, 
A sad, sad thing for her. It was, alas ! 
Th' Apocalyptic " loosing of the power 
" Of Satan " to assail the Church, and draw 
Her through a trial once again. — Despair 
Not, Earth, for first the Apocalypse must be 
Fulfilled : And Satan loosed again, biit for 
" A little season ;" then his race be run, 
And he forever far removed. — They pHed 
Their arts with all the skill that dev'hsh wits 
Could bring, and all the spite that dev'hsh breasts 
Could feel. They tried for years, nay centuries, 
And that, it must be said, with sad success. 

They started doubts in time about the word 



Satan Chained, 2d 7 

Of God, that had such glorious wonders wrought. 
That ancient book, " who know^s but 'tis a he, 
" A cheat, by priestly heads conceived, and put 
" Abroad by wicked hands ? Its teachings, how 
" Absurd ! Its facts, impossibilities. 
" And those w^ho would be bound thereby, the fools, 
" The veriest fools of earth." They thus seduced 
Now this, now that and now another from 
The fold. The dire infection ran at length ; 
And fearful inroads made upon the Church. 

The host grew large, the men that set themselves 
Against the word of God. They showed their faith 
Or rather lack of faith with burning zeal. 

From land to land, from isle to isle they grew 
In power ; and temples built and altars raised 
To Keason ; treading once again the track 
That faithless Gaul once trod, in years long, long- 
Elapsed. The fallen lower, lower fell. At last 
Touched bottom, downright Atheists grown ; 
Denied a God, and wrote the gospel down 

The vilest thing on earth. Then crimes grew rife 

Again, and discords reigned, and wars were waged, 
And violence returned anew ; and blood, 
With all its ancient horrors, now ran down 

The earth. But first, the love of many had 

Grown cold ; or they had never fallen from 
Their high estate ; and devils never could 
Have drawn them off from God. Let all beware 
And ever keep them from the first false step. 

" Denied a God !"— The rains and summer suns 
Beclothed the earth with green ; — " And yet there w^as 
*' No God !" The fields in autumn w.ived with rich 
And bounteous harvests for the life of man 



268 Satan Chained. 

And beast ; — " And yet there was no God." The trees 

Were stramed on every bough with golden fruits 

Of nectar juice, to tempt angehc taste, 

And yielded them to man ; — " And yet there was 

" No God." The snows and frosts came down, and locked 

The earth in death, and drave in Ayinter storms ; — 

"And yet there was no God.'' The spring returned, 

And winter bars gave way, and genial suns 

And showers, like magic, bade an Eden rise, 

Bedecked with flowers, and filled with odors as 

Of Heay'n, that ravished quite the sense ; — " And yet 

" There was no God." The tempest hung on land 

And sea, and swept the earth ; and heaved the waves 

Of ocean to the clouds ; — " And yet there was 

" No God.'' The thunder's awful voice was heard, 

And lightnings smote, and with then' fiery swords 

Fought battles in the clouds ; — " And yet there was 

" No God.'' The earthquake raved beneath, and split 

The globe, and sent a fiery delug-e to 

Consume ; — " And yet there was no God.'' And man 

Had all, in fine, his soul desired, his heart 

With food and gladness filled ; — " And yet there was 

" No God." And science pierced the heavens, in gaze 

Of telescopic sight ; and found new scenes 

Of wonder, that o'erwhelmed the soul, the field 

Of view still more and more enlarged as age 

On age had passed, and instruments of search 

Were wrought with higher skill, and knowledge had 

Been stored from sage to sage ; each building on 

The knowledge thus bequeathed till men had reached 

Far out in God's d 3main ; and settled points 

Of wonder never dreamed before ; had solved 

Such problems in far outward space as caused 



Satan Chained^ 269 

The mightiest intellect to reel beneath 

The thought ; — " And yet there was no God I" 

And she, from vast, descended to the small ; and scanned 

The world below, as worlds above ; and searched 

New laws of matter, not surmised in days 

Of yore, and thence, conclusions drew, of vast 

And starthng import, and that cried aloud 

Of wisdom infinite ; — " And yet there was 

" No God." She searched, beside, down to the first, 

The lowest step of life, and gazed with awe 

Upon the millions there, that sport within a drop, 

And find fuU sea-room in their wide domain : 

All organized, with parts essential to 

A Hving thing ; and yet the whole, so small 

That glass of highest skiU could hardly reach, 

In sunbeam light, their evanescent forms ; 

She saw, he learned their ways, their food, their hfe, 

Their death ; and with amazement viewed the whole : 

The man thus taught in all these wondrous things, 

Still blind, came back, and with his hardened heart, 

In madness cried, " There is no God !" All proofs 

Were thrown aside ; such proofs as should have made 

A faith to move the very mountains from 

Then- seats ; yet all was lost on him, — and why ? 

Because he lived in sin ; and feared : and then 

The thing he wished, he would, he would beheve. 

Chbonology A.D., 12,863. 

A hundred decades now had passed, and found 
The Church, though thinned, yet battling high against 
Her atheist foes. The ground had been retrod. 
Of ancient times when atheists swarmed on earth ; 



^70 8atan ChainecL 

The arguments of yore been urged again ; 

And others new that then were quite unknown,-^ 

By skih'ul hands ; and men began to see, 

And feel, and turn to God. The work went on 

From year to year, from score to score of years, 

And centuries of years. Her victories 

Were great. The opposing powers gave way ; and she 

Was seen once more a city on a hill. 

O glorious sight ! and shall she fall again ? 

No, never as her former lapse. 

'Twas done. 
She'd stood the test far better than in times 
Gone by. They'd tried, they'd tried in vain to cast 
Her down, forever down, no more to lift 
Her head, on earth again ; in vain ! They'd stirred 
Up Gog and Magog, whom they had seduced 
From out her fold. They'd sought her fall, they'd cast 
Their camp about her holy towers. But God 
Had interposed, and said, " It is enough ;" 
And scattered all her foes, and swept them from 

The earth. Now Satan had been chained, and loosed 

And Gog and Magog slain ; mere figures of 
Those great events that should o'ertake the Church, 
As shadowed forth in 'pocalyptic scene : 
The real chaining him is yet to come. 

Chkonology, A.D., 13,863. 

The course is now nigh clear, the race her own, 
A race all glorious, for all future time. 

END or BOOK ELEVENTH. 



^atan Chained, 271 



BOOK XII. 

CHROJVOIL.OGJY, ^.I>., 33,863. 



A THOUSAND decades now had passed, since she. 
The Church, had shaken off her foes, as Paul 
The serpent from his hand and in the end 
Received no lasting harm ; her mighty foes 
That swarmed in time long, long elapsed, her foes, 
Called Gog and Magog in Apocalypse. 
But since, she'd not been free from fierce assaults 
From here and there a wicked few inspired 
By Satan ; as he still had scope on earth ; 
And with his legions marred in some degree 
Her lovely outlines ; as th' undying surge 
Of ocean, 'gainst the rocky cliff abrades 
Its adamantive sides, abrades, but not 
O'erthrows. The rock stands firm, and laughs to scorn 
The thunder of its power. So she had stood, 
And under God had bid defiance to 

Her deadly foes. But 'twas enough. Her time 

Is drawing nigh. The signs are being full, 

When God shall free her from her chiefest foes, 

And set her still more clear " a city on 

A hill," the New Jerusalem, whose gates 

Shall be forever open wide, whose sun 

Is God himseK, who hence shall have his rest, 



272 Satan Chained. 

His tabernacle here Tvith men ; whose hand 
Shall wipe all tears from every eye ; and lo ! 
Shall make ere long such glory on the earth 
As if the heavens and the earth were made 
Anew ; so full of righteousness of men. 

What scene is yet to come ! when Satan's hosts 
Shall leave our earth, and take themselves to Hell, 
To fight among themselves, their chief enchained ; 
To fight among themselves, through endless years. 

There faction shall contend with faction, and 
The bloody wai's of that dread region, ah ! 
What tongue can tell ? For Satan kept them curbed, 
"While holding sway ; with iron arm suppressed 
The longings of each would-be rebel chief. 
But now, the gi-eat, great autocrat, that like 
An ^tna sat upon the fires and kept 
Them down, removed forever from their fear, 
Each chief shall rise, and chief with chief contend. 
And make that dread abode a double hell. 

What wailings shall be heard, the wailings of 
Despair, out-wrung from every bosom of 
The common damned ! No rest for them by day, 
By night. But ever dragged to take the side 
Of some vile chief, shall spend their weary years 
Iq pent-up forts or camps, or waste their strength 
In marches and in contests without end. 
What future is for Hell ! a future soon 
To be commenced, which shall eternally 
Endure. 

But Satan was defiant as 
Of old, nor heeded he the meaning of 
The times ; but spent his days and nights, with chiefs 
Surrounded or alone, iu planning how 



8atan Chained, 273 

He migM assail the hated Church, and bring her to 

The dust again ; or make her quite extinct. 

The task was great ; for she was strong ; and hence, 

His spite was tenfold greater than in times 

Gone by. His ill success had chafed him to 

The soul ; and raised a phrenzy that, at times. 

Boiled out in fierce volcanic fires. Again, 

He sat in moody silence, not resigned. 

Though spirit-crushed in part, yet still resolved 

To bid defiance to the God of Heaven ; 

And wage eternal war against his Church. 

His blasphemies must not be told, nor threats 

Of vengeance that should yet ensue. Nor he 

Alone, but thousands round him, heated to 

The quick, looked upward, cursed, and were forthwith 

To madness driven. They planned an onset new 

" To earth. " All Hell shall rise so strong that God 

" Himself shall tremble on his throne." 'Tis thus 

The wicked plan, and for the time forget 

That God is greater than themselves. Vain ! vain ! 

A fate awaits them that they httle dream. 

For soon their chief shall be enchained ; and they, 

The minor chiefs shall be in deadly strife 

Among themselves. And yet they might have known. 

At least conjectured that some direful ill 

Would soon befall. For signs there were in HeU 

That frightened all that world. The air was filled 

"With battles, and the direful clash of arms 

"Was heard ; and blood fell dripping from the clouds ; 

And ran in fearful streams along the ground. 

And sights were 'seen in midnight hours that chilled 

The blood, and withered up their souls. Again, 

From air and earth strange words were sounded forth, 
18 



274 Satan Cliaintd, 

From rock and cave in midnight's deepest gioom, 
(As at Jerusalem befoie its fall, ) 
That drank the very marrow of their bones, — 
In voice, in hollow awful voice pronounced, 
*' Let us be gone ; come let us haste away /" 
And caverns deep replied and echoed back, — 
" Let us be gone ; come, let iis haste away." 
Alas ! they were in Hell, and how escape ? 

Again, 'twas dark for days and days ; a pall, 
A darkness that that could be felt. It hung 
Like death on all that lower world. They grope 
Their devious way with trembliug and despair ; 
And whisperiags heard within the gloom, that drained 
Their very life. They fain would flee to right, 
To left, or back recoil ; but all in vain. 
The whisperings whispered still, and nearer drew ; 
And in their very ears hissed out their voice. 

And yet they saw no shape, no form could touch ; 
The voice, the voice was all ; in darkness wrapped. 
Intangible, and yet forever heard. — 

And then, the darkness gone, the ground was seized 
"With trembling, such as never known before. 
The towers of Satan fell, and mountain tops 
Leaped headlong to the vales ; and devils scarce 
Could keep their feet. For days and weeks the strange 
Vibrations lived ; unhke the earthquake shocks. 
That ever and anon disturb that world. 

The caverns groaned ; and from the desert came 
Up fearful sighs ; that sighed and sighed again, 
And wept and wept ; and never, never ceased. 

These all were signs portentious of some great 
Impending ill ; and so the common damned 
Beheved. But Satan and his chiefs, though half 



Satan Chained, 275 

Convinced, refused to give a feather's weight 
To all these omens that the times produced. 

The while in Heaven were signs as well ; not signs 
Of dread ; but such as filled with joy the souls 
Of that blest world. The saints grew buoyant far 
Beyond their wont ; and yet they kaew not why. 
They laughed out-right, and clasped each other in 

Their arms. Their dreams were of the sweetest kind. 

They dreamed of earth, their native home ; and saw 

An Eden there, a reign of righteousness 

And peace. The thorns of earth were gone ; the wastes 

"Were now no more ; but were to fertile fields 

Eeduced, and flowery lawns. The Amaranth 

Was there again, transplanted back from heaven to earth, 

AVhose clime, now changed, shall never blast it more. 

It shone in bloom perpetual round the globe ; 

And sent its grateful fragrance up to Heaven. 

Of mountains leveled, and of valleys raised 
They dreamed ; and goodly harvests waving quite 
From pole to pole. The savage beast was gone. 
And man possessed his forest home, redeemed, 
And tilled, and rich with food for man. — They dreamed 
Of intellect displayed, and knowledge gained 
Beyond what had been thought before ; and saw. 
In clear and lovely vision, Adam's race. 
Their brethren here below, so pure, so high 
In every worth, that earth seemed but a step, 
One single step from Heav'n. Diseases were 
No more, nor death. The tree of life they saw, 
Sprung up again in ev'ry soil and chme ; 
WTiereof men eat and Hved ; and never said 
Again " I'm sick." 

The waters now were seen 



276 8atan Chained, 

Again ; the same that once the Prophet saw. 
That issued from the temple eastward, and 
Were now a sea, a sea that none could pass, 
So deep, so wide they flowed. The waters these 
Of life. Salvation's flood, which onward rolled 
In silv'ry sheen, and caused the growth of food 
And ev'ry heahng tree upon its banks : 
And onward sweeping, reached at length the sea, 
And healed its wave ; and filled the same with life. 
Abundant Hfe. Oh ! glorious sight for earth ! 
They saw in vision, and with raptures thrilled. 
Burst out in shouts — and then awoke ;— and lo ! 
It was a dream, but with a faith, a strong 
Abiding faith, that earth would soon be blest 
With some great act of God. And this, the more. 
As God the Father and the Son seemed • now 
To hold more frequent council. Oft the Son 
In human form still wrapped, though glorious and 
Divine, went up the mount of God, and lost 
Himself within the cloud, the glorious cloud. 
That ever wraps that topless hill ; and is 
The light of that vast world above. 

Again descending he with Moses and 
Elias talked. They cast sweet looks to earth ; 
And seemed to smile beyond their wont. 

Again, sweet music in the air was heard. 
That stayed the footsteps of each spirit blest : 
That sang of earth, of glory yet to come ; 
And filled each Hstening soul with joy unknown 
Before. These all were signs in Heav'n of some 
Approaching good to earth. And so it was 
Believed ; and daily looked for by the blest 
With eager eye. But what or when was far 



Satan Chained. 277 

Beyond their reach, though some of shrewdest kind 

Had half deciphered out the truth ; yet still 

In doubt. They knew that God had promised great, 

And lasting good to man ; and that his church 

Should not forever be pursued with spite 

Of Satan ; that the time should come when God 

Would say, " It is enough. She now shall be 

" Keheved from her most deadly foe ;" for she 

Had stood the test ; had written for herself 

A record fair, upon the w^hole ; and one 

That shall endure throughout all time to come. 

That she can stand the assaults of every foe ; 

And, — though at times cast down, enfeebled by 

Her own miscourse, — still can arise and stand 

Upon her feet ; and battle strong again 

For God and right ; and stronger still she stands 

At every rise ; which shows a doubtiug world 

That she has hfe, inherent life, that lives 

And shall forever live. The world shall know 

It, and shall see, and feel this living proof, 

This overwhelming argument that she's 

Of God. They knew that Satan should be chained, 

A fixture somewhere in the realm of Hell, 

No more to lead the world astray, and blast 

The prospects of the race of man. — But w^hen, 

When shall the thing be done ? Is that blest time 

At hand ? or is it far, far distant in 

The future cast ? This none could solve beyond 

A doubt, but still they hoped 'twas near. — 

Meantime, 
In Heav'n the signs were rip'ning fast, and cloud 
On cloud, dispersed ; and doubts soon yielded up 
To full belief. The hosts of God were warned ; 



2T8 Satan Chained. 

And mustered on the plains of Heav'n ; and at 
Their head stood Michael, yet'ran chief, renowned 
In times gone by, when Satan warred with God. 

Upon his face, though glorious, were scars 
Of battle, and his weapons shone with gold. 
And gems, and burnished steel. His form, erect, 
And tall above the rest, and vig'rous frame. 
Showed him no common foe to meet alone. 
But with the hosts of God to back him up, 
"What prodigies of war might he not do ! 

The hosts were all arrayed, and marshaled ; and 
A grand review was held. They marched in long 
Procession through the golden streets of that 
Bright world, with banners flying, and with tunes 
Of richest sound and all-inspiiung in 
Their martial strains. It ravished angels ; and 
Infused an ardor to each breast that told 
Full well what might be felt by any foe 

That dared with them contend. These are the hosts 

Of God ; that ready stand to vindicate his cause ; 
And now about to fight his battles down in Hell. 

They halt in long, long line upon the plain 
Adjacent to the Mount of God ; and stand 
Awaiting his behests. — The scene is changed ; 
The hght withdrawn, and darkness shrouds that hill. 
And now is heard within, deep thunder, peal 
On peal, in loud and awful voice : and fii^es, 
In darkhng flame, shoot forth ; and hide themselves 
Anon — and then fi'om that rent cloud glare out 
Anew. Terrific scene ! appalling e'en 
To angel ears and eyes. — "Tis God, about to pom- 
His vn'ath upon his unrelenting, fierce, 
Blasphemous foes. The darkness wanes away, 



Satan Chained^ 279 

And light again returns ; and God vouchsafes 

His smile anew throughout all Heaven. — The hosts 

Break out in shouts ; and praise and magnify 

That goodness that has saved them, and bestowed 

On them that glorious Heav'n they hold ; that he, 

Though swift, at leDgth, against his foes, yet makes 

Their Heav'n with his benignant smiles. — A voice 

Is heard from out the cloud, as once was heard 

On Sinai's Mount. — ' Go, Michael, smite the foes 

" Of God, my fierce, incorrigible foes. 

*' And let them feel, again thy strength ; and take 

" Thou Satan, whom for ages gone I've spared ; 

" Nor on him poured the full infliction due 

" His crimes. — Yet he has sinned, and sinned again ; 

" Defied my power, blasphemed my name ; and fired 

" His chiefs, and all the common damned to break, 

" Forever break my law ; and dare my hosts 

" To meet them in the field again. Go, go, 

" My faithful ones. Go, Michael, let them feel 

*' Thy arm. Make every knee to bow and tongue 

" Confess ; — and take thou Satan, who has so 

" Sednceil my flock of angels and of men ; 

" And filled my works with sin, and poured out blood 

" Of saints like water ; who has prowled hke beast 

" Of prey throughout my universe to seek 

" The ones he could devour ; but chief on earth ; 

" Where he has ranged for ages past ; and sought 

" The ultimate extinction of my church : 

" Has crushed the innocent, the weak, and dragged 

" Them down, and blasted hopes that never can 

" Return.— He warred in Heav'n ; I sent him down 

" To Hell to find a lesson there, nor dare 

" My power. But he could never learn to heed 



280 Satan Chained. 

" My law, though threat of future ill was sure 

" To come. He wreaked his malice on my poor, 

" And made them cry to Heav'n ; and caused whole lands 

" To leave my rule and wander after him ; 

" And practice crimes that shocked the world. Go thou, 

" Take Satan, bind him hand and foot, and him 

" Transport to some lone isle far out upon 

" The barren face of Hell's wide sea ; and there 

" With chains confine him. Go, and take the chain 

" Provided for that very use ; whose links 

" Shall hold him fast, unbrakeable, throughout 

" Eternal years." He said ; and darkness veiled 

His throne again ; and lightnings flash anew, — 
And thunders roll — and shake the region round. — 

There was no fear from God, and yet so dread. 
So awful was the scene, that all the hosts 
Grew pale, and trembled ; and e'en Michael said, 
" I do exceeding quake and fear :" as said 
By Moses when he stood before the Mount. 

Now Michael took the chain from where it hung. 
And took the thunder of the living God ; 
And with his hosts, full armed, and ready for 
The task assigned, departs from Heav'n. and takes 
His downward flight to regions of the damned. 

They crossed the wide abyss ; so wide that thought 
Could scarcely span the whole. What barren wastes 
Were in their track ! What fields of empty space. 
Where sight nor sound was ever known before ! 
Yet naught they feared ; the good have naught to fear, 

For days, and days, with zeal, and utmost speed. 
They voyaged downward through the whole in loose 
Array. — They spy at length far, far beneath, 
The dark and dreadful, yet stupendous globe qf HeU \ 



Satan Chained, 281 

In size, compared to which, our solar orb, 

Though vast in bulk, is but a single drop, 

To ocean, — Here they halt, close up then- lines. 

And send forth scouts to make assurance sure ; 

To guard against surprise : Lest having note 

Of their approach, their wiley foe should steal 

Unseen with all his hosts, and he in wait, 

And smite them unawares.' — They send forth scouts, 

Who near with cautious wing the confines of 

That world. And soon they hear the murmuring 

Of sounds, that rise in strang-e confusion to 

Their ears, — from that lost world, that world of death 

And woe, the dire, dire sodom of the damned. 

It filled their ears as never filled before ; 
And checked their speed to hsten. Voices now 
Distinct were heard ; and plaints out-wrung from breasts, 
From breasts of spirits lost, who mourned their lot. 
The debauchee was there ; and he that lent 
Him aid in his designs ; and he that robbed 
His neighbor of his wealth and hid behind 
The technicahties of law ; and he 
That did it without law at all, and swore 
Him out of right, or set up witnesses 
To do the same ; and he that lived upon 
The earnings of the poor, outwrung from their 
Unwilling hands ; and he that with his wealth,— 
Not satisfied with lavish gains, — but broke 
His humble brother down in trade ; and sent 
Him out, with wife and babes, in poverty 
To struggle on in life anew ; and she 
Whose " steps took hold on hell," who cau.ght the young 
And thoughtless in her snare, and took them to 
Her house, wherein then* blood was shed ; and he 



282 Satan Chained. 

That slew the saints of God at bidding of 

The holy church ; (jes, he was there. He went 

All pardoned down to Hell ;) and judge unjust, 

Who held the scales for gain, and robbed the poor 

Of right, and set th' oppressor up on high ; 

And had forgotten that a Judge would judge 

The judges in the end ; and he that swore 

For gain, or did the same to please his fiiend, 

And thwarted thus a righteous cause. 'Twas sad. 

But God is righteous in his ways ; and sui'e 

All sins at last will find the sinner out. — 

The drunkard and the man that furnished him 

The cup that made him thus, were sadly there, — 

And last they saw, far off in lone retreat, 

The man, the man, that Jesus told, who erst 

Had sumptuous fare, alas ! whose clothing was 

Of linen fine and purple dye ; who sought 

His good on earth, and not in Heav'n ; — 

How wan and haggard now 1 and how forlorn ! 

'Twas sad and pitiful ; and yet his time, 

His long eternity had scarce begiin. — 

All these and more, far more, the angels saw. 

Their souls were pained, and tears rolled down their cheeks. 

Yes, yes, the lost drew tears from angel eyes ; 

E'en as the Savionr wept at Salem's fate. 

But time would fail to name the secrets of 
The varied sins that were revealed to ears 
Angehc as they hung o'er Hell. For there 
Is ey'ry crime ; and ev'ry bosom lost, 
By strange impulsion forced, declares 
At times his sins, though loth, and feels the keen 
Eegrets, the pains untold their ceaseless stings 
luflict ; — and owns, reluctant, vet with voice 



iSatan Chained. 283 

Distinct, his sentence just. The angel scouts 

Move on, and nearer draw to that lost world ; 

And see, with view distinct, the doleful throngs 

That there abide. They mark their haggard looks, 

Their careworn sunken cheeks, and holluw eyes ; 

And see the ver^' picture of despair 

In every face. They see, they pity, and 

Their hearts within them sink. But 'twas the w^ath 

Of God, outpoured upon them for their sins, 

Their sins they would not leave and keep God's law. 

Would not seek pardon when God's mercy called. 

They had theu' w^arnings, but they took no heed ; 

No heed to Mercy's call, or plea, or tears. 

Now Mercy is no more. The angels saw her not, 

But Justice there instead ; with steadfast eye ; 

And blade unsheathed ; and, what amazed them more 

Not here alone ; but omnipresent she 

Is seen throughout that world ; and ev'ry eye 

Beholds her ; and with painful vision shrinks 

Before her features stern and glitt'riiig sword. 

They saw the contests that forever mark 
The days and nights of that dire world, that w^orld 
Where hand of ev'ry one in violence 
Is raised against his fellow. And their ears 
Were stunned with sound of brawls and fightr, 
That rose as sound of Sodom in the days 
Of old. 

Meantime the scouts of Satan met 
Them on their way ; and instant sped and bore 
The news to Satan's ears. — But he was on 
The watch ; and had already felt surmise 
That foe might be on hand. For he had seen 
In far off sky a strange phenomenon ; 



284 Satan Chained, 

A nebnlons streak nnseen before. All ! ho 
Was wary, and forever watched the heayns, 
To see what foe might come from other worlds.- 

This small contracted dead he wondered what 
Could be ; this infant milky-way. — It was 
The host of ^lichael ; there in halt to close 
Up ranks, and form in battle line ; and with 
The Hght of Heav'n all glowing as the light 
Of distant sims through our ethereal space. 

But when his scouts, returned, reported bands 
Of armed foes from Heaven, — all doubt was gone. 
A foe was on approach. He instant gave 
Alarm. It swept through Hell. — by trumpet sonnd. 
By bell, by beacon fires and telegraph. 

All HeU was moved. And minutemen 
like leaves of autumn flocked to every goal ; 
Bat chief where Satan had his seat. They bring 
Their arms along ; and engines are brought out. 
Of newest, deadhest kind. The army swells 
And lengthens till the keenest spirit eye 
Can scarce discern its bounds. 

Meanwhile the light 
Of Micliaers host, so small from distance seen, 

Grows large and larger every hour. At length 

At close of day they Light with aU their arms 

Upon a wide-spread plain of that vast orb ; 

And there intrench themselves, throw out their guards^ 

And seek a night of rest. — At dawn of day 

They're roused ; and what was left unorganized 

Before, is finished now. And all are to 

Their posts assigned ; and watch- words given ; 

And ev'ry chief advised in his command. 

And soon thev move in march to find the foe. 



Satan Chained. 285 

Amaziug sight ! Phenomenon for Hell ! 

Their armor, bright and flashing to the skies. 

Of newest make, and dreadful to the view^ 

And soon to be essayed on spirit forms ; 

Supphes immense, and ev'ry needful store 

That Heav'n, with its unbounded wealth, could yield. 

Their lines how vast in length ! and yet compact ; 
And all advancing with unfaultering stej) ; 
And full of zeal for God and good. 

These are the armies of the skies, that fight 
The battles of the Lord ; that tread his foes 
Beneath their feet ; and at command chastise 
Them even down to Hell. Ah ! woe betide 
The force that dares oppose. 

They march through wastes 
Of fearful space ; and over Alps of height 
Immense and rugged cliff ; and day by day 
Draw near and nearer to the foe. At length 
They make descent, and wide deploy their Hnes 
Upon a vast, unbroken plain ; a plain 
Not green and fertile as the plains of Heav'n ; 
But barren and forbidding to the sight 
From winds of Skoc breath, and deadly heats 
And altern colds of that dire world : And there 
Intrench themselves to ward surprise and seek 
Bepose again from weary march. The guards 
Are posted, and the pickets set ; and all 
Are buried soon in slumber sweet. Their dreams 
Are of the richest kind ; of Heav'n, the joys 
Of that bright world ; of converse with the just 
Now perfect made ; of fruits, that hang on trees 
Of Heav'nly gTowth ; of draughts from that great flood. 
The everhving cool and sparkling stream 



286 Satan Chained. 

That flows forever from the hill of God. 

Behold them prone and slumber-locked within 
Their tents, or open to the air ; with brow 
Serene, and youthful glow. — Some hoary heads 
Were there, that show them yet'rans in the cause 
Of God. Yet still the bloom of youth is on 
Their cheeks ; and youthful yiofor, in their frame. 
So healthful is thf clime from which they came : 
Each grasping in hi? hand his (rusty steel. 
They stretch immense ; in niunber, yast beyond 
The power of human mind ; refi*eshing for 
The day about to dawn. For who can say 
What day that day may prove ? Perhaps, a day 
Historic, — in the books of Heaven and Hell, — 
For matchless deeds achieved, for victory lost, 
Mayhap, and victory won. The day will tell. 

But Satan, wiley chief, had had his spies 
Within the very camp of MichaeL They 
Had traversed it from end to end ; had seen. 
And noted down its strength, its minor arms. 
Its batteries of awful power, supplies 
For sustenance and ammunition to 
The fullest wish. Why not ? for Heav'n is rich. 
And has exhaustless stores for years and years 
To come. — These spies repair to Satan and 
Keport. " The host is vast, such host our Hell 
" Has never known before, so vast, so well 
" Equipped, with minor arms, and these sustained 
''• With engines of the deadhest kind ; besides, 
" We saw the engine of the living God ! 
*' That awful deadly instrument of war." 

At this his Holiness turned deadly pab : 
For he had felt the fatal blows of that 



Satan Chained. 287 

Dire engine on the plains of Heaven what time 

He made revolt, and battle joined to gain 

The throne of God. — His spirit sank within, 

And he was dumb ; but, roused, prepared to meet 

The foe. — ^His hosts were large, and vet'ran most ; 

Had followed him in all his nmn'rous wars ; 

"Were armed in latest style ; were drilled, and trained 

In highest art ; and ready stood to do 

His bidding ; to receive the stunning shock 

Of battle when it fell, or at the word. 

To hurl themselves like thunder-bolts upon 

The foe. He knew their metal, and their hate 

Of all that dwelt in Heav'n. He knew, if strength^ 

If utmost strength of theirs, with utmost hate, 

Inspired, could overcome the foe, it would 

Be done. And yet an inward sentiment, 

A strange foreboding held his soul, that he 
Would fail of ultimate success. Though he 
Had conquered on a thousand fields, and that 
The mightiest chiefs that Hell could boast, each one 
A host himself ; yet now 'twas Michael that 
Would tax his might and skill. As Pompey on 
Pharsalia's plains, though great himself, — yet felt 
That Caesar sure was greater still, with whom 
He now must measure arms ; — so he now felt 
Superior presence. This possessed his mind. 
And in degree bereft him of his skill 
And wonted fire. He, nathless, nerved him up 
To every effort to overcome his foe. 

For here his all was staked. The field must now 
Be won or never. For 'twas plain, he saw. 
That Michael had come down to square accounts 
With him. He knew his crimes, yet loved them, and 



288 Satan Chained, 

But wished them more ; such hatred wrankled in 
His breast against the God of Heaven. He knew 
If now he failed he lost the throne of Hell ; 
Must either flee, — Ah ! whither flee ? — or win 

A chain. He'd marshalled all his hosts ; had called 

His out-posts in from distant parts. 
What need there might be there he heeded not. 
The greatest need was here of all his j)ower. 
If here, he won, he won the whole ; if here, 

He lost, he lost the whole. But scouts return, and tell 

Him, Michael is approaching near with fii'm 
But cautious move. And soon the tidings come 
That he has halted ; and is making camp 
Beyond that ridge of hills, no doubt, to spend 
The night, from weary march of day 
Just past. — Good news for Satan. Here, he thinks, 
He sees a hope for vict'ry o'er his foe. 

His mind is made, — he'U wait no morning dawn, 
But quick, and with impetuous force, assail 
The foeman's lines, smrprise him in his sleep, 
And ere awake in fuU, make slaughter, and 
With panic fill, till all in wild dismay. 
Bewildered from the shout of sudden foe. 
And senses drowsy still, — shall break, and flee, 
Like antelopes before the lion's roar. 

He marches all his host with stealthy pace, — 
Drives Michael's pickets in, — who give th' alarm, — 
But instant at a signal given and yell 
That broke appalling on the ear, and roused 
Those unwaked, — rushed fierce and devilish on 

The Heavenly lines. These jdeld, for scarcely had 

They sprung to line before thej^ felt the weight 
Of numbers vast, and fearful blows of arms. 



Satan Chained. 289 

They yield, but not Avith panic filled as hoped 
By Satan. — They retire, but slow, and firm, 
And fighting. Satan crowds his masses on 
Them, and begins to feel that vict'ry sure 
Is his. They stand at length ; and take the shock 
Of all his power. For Michael, skilled in war, 
Had hne on line, arranged in rear, to give 
Support, whene'er superior force assailed. 

The conflict now is dreadful. Satan hurls 
His masses here, now there, and there again, 
To pierce the hues of Michael, but in vain. 
And after loss immense, retires, and yields 
Th€ struggle up. The time was short, but who 
Can count the havoc that was made in that 
Short, bloody hour ? — Hell fought for Hell, and Heaven 
For Heav n. And fought as if the universe 
Was staked upon that single field. And now 
The foe of God and man is found again 
"Within his lines, and sees, dismayed, the loss 
His force has met ; and burns with vengeance 'gainst 
His stubborn foe. And vows revenge to come. — 

The day just broke runs on ; and all is still : 

Th' intent of Michael is, next day to storm 

His works. And preparations are on foot 

At once for that design, so hazardous 

To even Heavenly arms. And every means 

Was sought for full success. And Mi(!haers tent 

Is thronged till midnight watch with higher chiefs, 

To know his plan ; and take the post assigned 

Them in that bloody hour. Meantime the host 

Had sought repose, and quieted lay prone 

Refreshing for the struggle soon to come. 

The minor chiefs were then informed ; and each 
19 



290 Satan Chained, 

Departed to his post to rest and wait 

The morning onset-signal. Morn at length 

Appears, and lo ! the foe is not. He'd shpped 
From out his works beneath the cover of 
The night, and fled to parts unknown. But he 
"Will soon be found. For Michael is resolved 
To search him out, and brmg to battle at 
The earliest day. 

His scouts return before 
The close of second day, and give him word 
Yf^here he will find the foe. — The next day dawns % 
And Michael is on early march for camp 
Of Satan. All his engines and supphes 
As well as host so vast, are on the move. 
And yet no special haste ; for he was sure 
Of vict'ry, when the trial came : For what 
Had Satan to compare with him in arms 
Or numbers of his host ? Besides, the cause 
Of Satan, though believed by him to be 
At least as good as IVIichael's, yet 'twas bad ; 
And had the frown of God upon it ; while 
The cause of Michael was of Heav'n ; 
A cause to bless the universe of God — 
With liberty, and peace, and every good. 
And hence God's favor and his blessing must 
Be on his arms. For God regards the right ; 
And though for reasons, known indeed alone 
To him, he suffers right to languish while 
The wrong prevails ; yet, in the end, the right 
Will rise ; and, hke God's witnesses as seen 
In vision clear on Patmos-isle, — will stand 
Erect, and see the overthrow of all 
Its foes. — This faith had Michael and his host. 



Satan Chained^ 291 

They moved in order due ; and not in haste, 
Nor slow ; but with such pace as well became 
Such host immense and multitude of train. 
The wa}^ was rugged ; for the face of Hell 
Is broken. Rocks forbidding choke his path ; 
And chasmas yawn ; and here and there a stream 
Of lava thwarts his course, still fiery hot 
And hissing from the bowels of that globe. 

But all impediments give way before 
Superior skill. The Heavenly host moves on 
From day to day, and soon draws near the plain, 
On farthest verge of which was Satan's camp. 

They halt ; and rest ; pitch tents ; and spend the night. 
But Satan, humbled now, makes no attack. 
The lesson, taug-ht of late, he must needs heed. 

He stays within his lines, behind his forts ; 
(Not much defense, 'tis true, in haste thrown up,) 
And waits th' attack of Michael, which be sure 

Will not be long delayed. But what will be 

His com'se ? "Will Michael rush in furious charge 
Across the plain, and make assault in force 
On Satan's works ? or will he flank his lines 
And force him out to open fight, or swift 
Retreat for other parts of Hell ; and then 
At once pursue, and crush him in his flight ? 

These questions time, and that full soon, will solve. 
For Michael came to make short work, and not 
To drag the war for years ; to overcome 
The foe of God and man ; to chain him, and 
Return again without delay, to more 
Congenial climes ; and there to rest his troops, 
Instead of wearing out their strength in Hell, 
That clime, that loathsome, unpropitious chme. — 



292 Satan Chained, 

What means this pause ? A day is passed, and all 
Is still. — Another day : — And quiet reigns. — 
And Satan and his host feel courage rise. 
E'en hope is born in devilish breasts, that they 
Shall stand the test, and wear out Michael with 
Delay ; or else, by chance of war, and choice 
Of ground, break down his forces when he makes 
Assault ; or better far demolish him 
In open fight ; and thus conclude the war. 

The third day dawns — and all is quiet still. 
The hours run on — and no advance, or sign 

Of war. At length, a thunder-peal speaks out 

From Michael's lines, that vexed the air, and shook 
The steadfast globe of Hell.— From end to end 
The livid sheets of fire shoot forth, half 'cross 
The plain. And missiles dire are hiuied, that rend 
The mounds, and smite the damned. But Satan soon 
Replies with awful pow'r, and sheets of flame 
Terrific, that eject his thunder bolts 
With deadly aim, and scarcely less in weight 
And force than those of Michael ; and they smite 
And smite amain upon the host of Heav'n. 

The battle rages, and the mercury 
Of Heav'n and Hell still higher reigns. No pause. 
But batt'ries new are brought to bear ; and fires 
In thicker blaze dart forth ; and havoc swells 
On either side. 

From hour to hour the fight. 
The dreadful conflict raves ; and Michael's hosts 
Advance, and ply their smaller arms wdth aim 
Of deadly line ; and Satan's quick reply 
In kind ; and havoc wider still bespreads 
The ground, to make an iron bosom weep. 



Satan Chained, 293 

Ah ! such is war ; a dreadful remedy ; 
And yet the only cure for certain ills ! 

At length a mine of sulph'rous flame explodes. 
The air is shocked, the ear is stunned, the globe 
Of Hell, so vast, down to its centre reels. 
And Satan's works and ranks are swept like chaff 
Before the blast. It was the engine of 
The hving God, just brought to bear upon 
His hnes. To this, all other engines seemed 
But childish play, all other sounds but seemed _ 
Mere whispers, and each shock of other arms, 
But gentle jogs to wake a sleeper from 
His dreams. The host of Satan stood appalled. 
Though vet'raus they, and trained to every fear, 
And battle shock, they felt their courage sink. 
They slackened fire. — This Satan saw, and rushedj 
Upon his charger borne, along his lines. 
For he perceived that nothing but his words 
And presence could preserve the day, if that 
They could. His words were sharp or kindly as 
It seemed him best. He kindled fires anew 
In every breast, and roused them to the fight. 

" Alas !" said he, " the chivaky ! Shall they 
" Give in ; and quail before the dastard sons 
" Of Heav'n, this mean, corrupt and cowardly 
" Affair lead on by Michael ? Cowards ! yes, 
" Who dared, in truth, not nieet our hosts in fight 
" On equal terms ; but shrinking called on God 
" For thunder ere they came ; while here we use 
" No thunder but our ow^n. And shall they hold 
" The rule o'er you, the aristocracy ? 
" Your blood ! — such blood runs not in other veins— 
" And shall such blood as yours be overcome 



294 Satan Chained. 

" By tliis plebeian race ; vrho'd rather crinc-e 

" And crawl in Heavn, and have her dainty fare, 

" Than join our high-bom ranks when we rebeiledj 

" And take secession as theu' noble lot, 

*' And have then- freedom in our glorious Hell ? 

" What light have they in Hell to bring us war ? 

'• Have we not right to build a kingdom for 

" Om'selves, and iTile as we shall please ? Is this 

" The justice of the Tyrant that holds sway 

" In Heay'n ? We ask but to be let alone." — 

Indeed 1 " to be but let alone T Had he 
Been always just to " let alone " the ones 
Who wished no call from him ? Where is the world 
He has not ransacked ? Where the land, on our 
Green earth he has not trayersed like a beast, 
A roaring Hon, seeking whom he might 
DeToui' ■? His inroads on the works of G-od 
Have never ceased ; and never will till he 
Is chained ; — and now, forsooth, because he finds 
Himself pursued, and pressed by foe, beyond 
All hope of victory, or e'en escape — 
He whines ; and talks of justice ; and complains 
That he's not let alone. Xo, no, his feet, 
His godless feet, with all his godless crew, 
Have trod on eveiy soil, his mischiefs filled 
All worlds throu.cfhout the universe of God. 
And now he shall no further go ; but shall 
Be finished up, throughout eternal years. 
So mv^ the hand that initsfi upon thp icaJt. — 
" We ask no odds but to be let alone." 

These words and many more he scattered through 
His host in passing on from corps to corps. 
They saw him dauntless as thev heard his voice ; 



Satan Chained. 295 

And took new life ; and made the welkin ring 
With shouts ; then plied their arms and batteries 
With fury never known before in Hell. 
And Michael's ranks are swept, and hurled in heaps 

And windi^ows by their awful power. The while. 

The direful engine of the hying God 
Was playing dreadful on his suffering lines ; 
And shot forth globes of death and iron hail 
And bui'sting thunder bolts, which so beswept 
The works of Satan, and becrushed his ranks, 
'Twas plain that all the valor and the might 
That he and all could bring, would not suffice 
To hold the battle till the close of day. 

But now two heavenly flags are seen behind 
The left, and right, of Satan's lines. They were 
Two flanking corps of Michael's, which had made 
Detour, and just arrived to take them in 
The rear. — A shout from heavenly lungs, that earth 
Knows not ! — a charge in front and flank upon 
The hosts of Satan, now dismayed anew ! 

His wings now pressed^ in front and rear, recoil 
Disheartened ; and at length crowd in upon 
The center, which awhile withstands the shock 
Of Heav'nly arms, as adamantine rock 
The billows' surge. But what could they alone ? 
They yield at length, o'erborne by crushing weight 
Of columns, mass on mass thrown on them ; ana — 
They break — and — all — fs — lod ! ! 

The Heavenly hosts 
On every side close in upon them ; and 
Escape is now beyond all hope. They see. 
They comr^rehend the whole ; throw down their arms ; 
And ask for quarter from the foe ; which giv'n. 



296 Satan Chained. 

They feel the war is. at an end ! And here 
They rest. The chivahy submit, chagrined. 
And make a virtue of this sad, this dire 
Necessity. And they decide to put 
The best face on the thing they can. The while- 
Are inward stung, to ask for quartei' ; and 
Raceive the boon of hie from that sam.e crew. 
That " mean, corrupt, and cowardly affair 
Lad on by !Michael ;" and to stand unarmed 
And passive in their hands, and be dis^^osed 
Of as they shall decree. 

Alas! alas! 
The Chivahy ! Tne better blood ! that talked 
So loud ; that boasted erst so high ! — And has 

It come to this at last ! ^Now where's the boast 

Of Satan, that at some not distant time 
He would possess the throne of God ? His hosts 
Are captured, and himself has fled with scarce 
A body-guard. The prospect for his hope 
Seems now not most auspicious ; and the sky 
For him looks rather hke a storm. Yet let 
Him boast and promise : and let those beheve 
Who will. But time will verify, and that, 

Perhaps, full soon. But where is Satan ? Fled — 

With utmost speed — and nigh alone — and lef fc 

His host, his ai-ms, and his suppHes, and e'en 

ELls hopes — ^behind ; and towards the Death-waste drives 

His fleeing steps, with hope that Michael will 

Not find him out. He reached at length, far, far 

"Within, the direst tract that region dire 
Could boast, untouched before by devilish foot. 
Its ills were greater than a devil could 
Endure. But he was in such strait as he 



Satan ChainecL 297 

Before had never dreamed. He halted here, 
A refuge now from greater ills, a treat, 
A luxury, he scarce could hope to find. 

He there concealed himself ; deep stung that ho, 
The ruler once, the autocrat of all 
The Hells, — before whose feet the billions bowed — 
That he,— great potentate, whose nod was law, 
"Whose wars and vict'ries never knew an end, — 
Should fly a foe ; and, like a midnight thief 
Escaped, should be compelled to hide himself 
Like beast or reptile in a noisome cave ; 
And there keep watch ; and dread th' approach of feet 
Plebeian. Such is wickedness ; full sure 
To bring disaster in the end, though long 
Delayed. 

But where is Michael ? "Will he search 
Him out, and bring him to the block or chain ; 
The duty he had orders to perform ? 
He will. His bands are out in every course ; 
"With charge to leave no nook unscanned, no rock. 
No cave, no desert tract ; and bring him bound 
Forthwith.- But days elapse and no return. 

Meantime, the captive host are kept on guard ; 
Nor suffered on parole to pass the bounds ; 
For what parole can bind a de^dl fast ? 
He'll swear, pledge honor, but he'll keep no faith„ 
His promises, his oaths, are ropes of sand. 
"Who trusts the wicked trusts to his dismay. 

But they, shall they escape the justice due ? 
Ah, no. Their punishment shall be the loss 
Of Satan's power : no chief to keep them down. 

Now civil wars of that dire realm shall r ige. 
And never, never cease. But earth shall gain 



298 Satan Chained, 

A profit in their curse ; for they shall find 
No time to visit her, and mar as erst 

The Eden growing there. But days on days 

Elapse. StxU no report from scouts, sent out 
To search for Satan's whereabouts. They scour 
The globe of Hell in every compass point ; 
But no avail. They sweep the arid plains, 
They search the barren hills, climb unknown rocks 
Of rugged cliff and Alpine height ; and grope 
Through yawning caverns of forbidding depth : 
But no avail. — The search continues still. 
He's nowhere to be found in all the wilds 

Of Hell. At length they near the Death-waste. There 

They halt upon its fearful edge ; and look ' 

Abroad upon its doleful scenes, that bring 

A shudder over every heart. Could he 

Be there ? Would he, to shun ten thousand chains, 

Betake himseK to that abode ? He would. 

His spirit proud will never, never yield. 

He'll suffer, — but he will not bend. The search 

Must, then, be made ; and they prepare themselves 

Forthwith for perilous adventure through 

That dang'rous waste. — They know the ills that there 

Beset ; and ev'ry caution use to ward 

Them off, or, met, to overcome them on 

The spot. They clothe themselves in mail, and guard 

Their limbs in every part ; the head, the face, 

The feet ; and then, vdth weapons held in hand. 

And, not without an inward shrinking at 

The thought, launch forth upon that heath of death. 

The muse recoils to 'count the sights and sounds 
That met their sense ; what serpents coiled, with £je 
Of fire and brandished tongue, they scarcely shunned ; 



Satan Chained, 299 

What mammoth reptiles prone, they passed ; what asps 
Of deadly sting, they brushed from off their forms ! 
What voices strange from every depth and cave 
Came sighing forth ! what shrieks from empty air ! 
What gi'oans from shadowy hills were heard ! All, all 
Were such to make the boldest angel pause ; 
A.nd give the strictest heed to every step. 

They journey on, the angel bandj and search 
By day, by night, and scarcely stop for rest. 
But no avail. No Satan or his trace 

Can yet be found. At length they near the edge 

Of what appeared a plain, but frightful to 
The eye as well as ear ; with ev'ry ill, 
With every terror filled. Its breath upsteamed 
Was charged with death — a Bohon-apas tract 
Of HeU — a Death-waste in a Death-waste of 

That world. They pause again ; and though inured 

Of late to fearful scenes, yet now their hearts 

Within them sink. They feel a terror rise 

Unfelt before through all the range of life 

That they had passed. What can this be ? A Hell 

Within a Hell ; to which all other parts 

Of that dread world, seemed nigh a Paradise. 

Must this be searched ? Must they adventure forth, 

And scour such tract as that ? 'Twas more than they 

Had thought, or ever dreamed. Yet duty called. 

And they must strict obey. They launch at once 

Upon this inner death ; with ten-fold care 

Guard every step ; and search for days again. 

At last in utmost verge of murky sky, 
With utmost strain of sight, they see, what seemed 
A pile, a pile upthrown of rocks of rough 
And daring cliff. Who knows but Satan may 



300 Satcm Chained, 

Be there, ensconced in some deep caverr in 

The bowels of that moiuid ; or there intrenched 

Behind some strong defence ; so sti'ong to bid 

Defiance to all coming foe ? — They urge 

Their course that way ; and find as they had thought, 

A massy heap, which seemed a mountain lite, 

;^Tow shattered by some blast of God. They gaze 

Upon the scene ; a scene sublime for Heaven 

Itself. In bold rehef the masses lay, 

Piled high, wiih cliff on cliff immense, to reach 

The clouds. And far within, beneath an arch, 

A natural arch, they find what seemed a cave, 

Or rather, entrance to a caye. The mouth. 

Strong barred by pond'rous rocks, as if thus placed 

By recent hands, — They pause. — " Is this the place^ 

" The refuge of our conquered, fleeing foe ? 

" Poor Satan !" they ejaculate aloud ; 

" If here, ^yiQ he surrender when he finds 

" Himself beset on every side ? Will he 

" Be bold to answer when we call ; or whipped 

" So sore, will he show less of daring than 

" His wont ; and, cowering in the sides of this, 

" His den, in silence tremble at our voice ? 

" Poor Satan ! Fallen, fallen, fallen ! Once, 

" I've heard it said, he stood in eminence 

" In Heav'n. "Twas Abdiel who consented kind 

*' To hold discourse with me. We talked of him, 

" Of Satan. He had known him well, and had 

'•' Distinct remembrance when he first came fcrth^ 

" A spirit young, fi'om God's creative hand ; 

" His person fair, his frame of wondrous might, 

" His intellect betok'ning giant strength. 

" He gi'ew in greatness as he grew in 8ge. 



Satan Chained^ 301 

" In search of knowledge every barrier fell ; 

'' And in his upward flight of knowledge and 

" Of excellence, he swept by all as e'en 

" The comet in its upward flight outstrips 

" The stars, and leaves them all behind. And yet 

" None envied, but rejoiced m his success. 

" 'Twas plain the time would come when he would stand 

" Above all creatures else of God. That time 

" Arrived. He gained the height, and looked abroad, 

" And saw a vast expanse, where all beneath 

" Him lay. He looked above, and nothing saw, — 

" Save God alone, at awful distance, high 

" And lifted up. And then, — who could believe ? 

" He sinned and fell ! — Oh fool ! — And lost him Heaven ! 

" Oh Lucifer, how fallen, fallen now ! 

** I've heard it said that sin, though sweet at first, 

" Is sure to work out ruin in the end." 

They said : and Satan heard within, and blpzed 

With passion that knew no control. He dared 

Not venture out. They were too strong. But safe 

Within, he bade defiance to them all. 

And bade them enter if it seemed them best ; 

And they should know fuU soon if Satan was 

Himself or not. " 'Twas true, the chance of war 

" Had brought him low, had 'reft him of his power, 

" And 'hap his kingdom for all time to come. 

" Yet he was Satan 4iU ; that be assured." 

Thus he : — The angels summoned him to yield, 
And make surrender to their will, or that 
Of Michael, for they came at his command. 
" Surrender !" cried the haughty chief. "And is 
" This Satan ? He surrender ! Never ! Tell 
" Your chief, if he withdraws to Heaven again, 



302 Satan Chained. 

" And leaves us -uiidistiirbed, and leaves our soil, 

" The sacred soil of Hell, the war shaU cease. 

" But nothing short will we accept. Go, tell 

" Him. Let him then decide." — What madness ! Here 

Is Satan, pent within a cave ; too weak 

T' encounter this smaU band ; and yet presumes 

To dictate terms of peace to Michael, who 

Has conquered him ; and brought him down thus low ; 

And holds his host entire, now conquered, in 

His grasp, with all his arms and requisites 

Of war. " If ^Michael u ill rethe and leave 

The sacred soil of HeU, he'll grant him peace !" 

How kind is Satan to the Host of Heaven ! — 

To grant them respite on such easy t^rms 

And fair ! 

The angels could not see it, nor 
Could ^Michael when informed ; but ordered forth 
A force to go with utmost speed, and take 
The Eebel Chief without delay, and bring 
Him bound, to him. 

And they obey at once. 
And reach the hold of Satan, and demand 
That he should quit his lair, and yield himself 
Without reserve a captive to their hands ; 
And yield his sword to them, no more to war. 

Now Satan could not see it ; and refused 
With utmost scorn ; and " if they wished his sword, 
" 'Twas there, and they had but to come and take 
" It." Ah, no easy task to take that sword 
That dire terrific blade, and wielded by 
That arm of high archangel strength ; that swore', 
That had achieved such high renown ; that had. 
In battle's hour, in fearful fury raged, 



Satan Chained. 303 

And cloven down so many hostile chiefs. 

All ! woe betide the single arm that 'tempts 

A deed so bold I No arm was equal to 

The task, of ail that came from Heav'n, save that 

Of Michael ; and he now is far away. 

But Satan must be seized, and borne to him. 

And how shall they succeed. They ponder o'er 

The various ways that promise most success. 
But none seem so much better than the rest, 
As to secure unanimous consent. 
And yet, some plan must be devised, to give 
The Kebel to their hands. — Now this, now that 
They choose. But on review the same they cast 
Aside. They fix their choice another way ; 
And then relinquish that again, till lost 
In deep perplexity what means to use 
To reach their end. 

At length, an engineer 
Of that bright corps, proposed to lay a mine. 
And blow that mountain fastness to the clouds. 

It was agreed. And day by day, and week 
By week they seemed in idleness to waste 
Their time, unequal to the task they had 
In hand. They set them down as guards around 
That pent-up few ; and there it seemed their hope 
Must end. But they grew hopeful more and more. 
As day on day elapsed ; and Satan grew 
Defiant more and more, at seeing their 
Belay.—" 'Tis well," said he, " that they should be 
" My guards, these angels, who so long have breathed 
'•' The air of Heav'n. Yes, let them stay. 'Tis well 
" That they should have a little taste of Hell ; 
" And here, pent up within qui- Death-waste, should 



304: Satan Chained. 

■ Outwear their days, and never see their HeaT'n 
'• AgaiiL And Michael, waiting their success, 
" May pass his years, if he shall choose, with all 
" His host ; and breathe our blessed air, and feel 
" The Tigor of our dime ; and go, if hap 
" The thing shall be, to Heaven again, with health 
" Kenewed, and even wisdom quite improyed- 

*' Yes, let them stay in this our Hell, and spoil 
" Themselves for HeaVnly fare agaiiL ^Tis good ; 
'•' Ir gives me joy at their enjoyment here. 
" Hah, hah ! We welcome them to our sweet clime." 

Be — not—too— sure, — ^yourself and godle^ few! — 
Their stay may, he^y, shorten e'er yen are 

Aware. ^They were engaged in mining ; and 

He knew it not. He heard the sound at times ; 
But thought 'twas subterranesai fires, in growl 
Of strife, so common 'neath the crust of that 
Unsettled globe. He heeded not, nor dreamed 
The sure volcano rip'ning 'neath his feet. 
They scooped a vista deep and long, and then 
Spread out in chambers wide to right and left 
Beneath the centre of that pile where Inrked 
The conquered, deadly foe, with few enscocced ; 
Yet Tmsuspicious of the danger near ; 
And each rec^s, with cautious hand, they jzlled 
With dynamite, that should ere long distmb 
The very globe of HelL Eetiring then, 
They bar the entrance strong with massy rock ; 
And' chink with earth, till all seemed sohd as 
Before their toiL They then retire ; and stand 
Aloof. Which Satan seeing, took new heart. 
'• I knew 'twould come to this at last," said he, 
" Though overthrown, we're still too strong for our 



Satan Chained, 305 

" Malicious boastful foe. See now they leave 

" Us though subdued. Yes, they're afraid that we 

" Shall issue from our castle here, and sword 

" In hand shall give them chastisement severe 

'' For their intrusion on our private hours. 

" Yes, yes," said he, " though hard, yet we must part. 

" We bid them then affectionate farewell ; 

" And hope they'll teU the truth on reaching home." 

In hke derisive mood, the others there 

Joined in, and made a laugh that shook the cave, 

And echoed back from the surrounding hills. 

For once, they had facetious grown ; and seemed 

A jolly f 'sw, as if in session o'er 

Their cups. — 

At length, the long, long train is touched ; — 

And all in breathless silence wait the grand 

Kesull, — Another larugh within the cave. 

At witticism given ; a long, — loud — laugh — 

A thunder peal ; or rather earthquake ! and 

The globe of Hell is to its centre jarred ; 

And that vast pile of cliffs immense, is shot 

In wild confusion to the clouds. Alas ! 

And Satan and his few are mingled with 

The" wreck ; first upward hurled, — then downward dashed, 

And whelmed by pouring masses of debris. 

They lay bestunned, and bruised in every part. 

And now's the time, — and now 'tis full improved. 

The foe of God and man, thus stupified. 

Is seized, and ironed safe. He soon awakes, — 

And finds himself undone ; — secure, beyond 

All hope ; with fetters, locked, unbreakable. 

Yes, he who has forever, since his fall, 

Roamed forth at will ; and, though chastised severe, 
20 



306 Satan Chained. 

Defied the power of God witli impious tongue ; 
And gloried in his neTer-ending crimes, — 
Is now in fetters held ; the first time bound 

In his eventful life. Eecovered now, 

His frenzy none can tell. like tig-er fresh. 
Or forest boar, he shook his fetters, foamed 
And gnashed his teeth ; that awed his captors down, 

Though bound both hand and foot. The siege is closed. 

At once they leave, and take their hasty march 
For Michael ; and in time airiye ; and to 
His presence bring the haughty captive chief ; 
Bestung at soul, yet bold in outward mien. 

He stood in silence and in scorn ; and heard 
While Michael read the stem decree of God : 
'• That for his crimes, his oft-repeated crimes, 
•' His crimes against the God of Heav'n, his crimes 
" On earth, and other worlds of God, his crimes 
*' In drawing after him the myriad hosts 
'•' Of Heav'n, and, now, of earth, whose cries have reached 
" To God ; his crimes, though dark and fearful, yet 
" A pastime to his taste, the offepring of 
" His fierce, mahcious soul : for these, his race 
" Is run : and, now, henceforth he shall be chained ; 
*' Xo more to rove through earth and skies ; and wreak 
*' Hjs mahce on the good ; and draw 

*' God's creattu-es off from him." He heard ; nor deigned 

Eeply. But sullen, yielded to his fate. 

Eejoice, oh Heav'ns ! And earth, hold jubilee ! 
For he that wasted you is now no more. 
His arm is broke : his rage is impotent. 
Go on and prosper till yoiu' cup is fuU, 
The cup of blessing, to the brim ; tiU all 
Th' apocalypse shah be fulfilled : the bride 



Satan Chained, 307 

Descend to meet her spouse, the church, the New 

Jerusalem, the City of our God ; 

The church ; in which he will forever dwell ; 

And be the light thereof ; nor needing sun, 

Nor moon ; — whose gates shall never, hence, be shut, 

Inviting freely all ; to which the Kings 

Of earth shall come ; and there their glory and 

Their honor bring ; through which a living stream 

Shall flow ; and nourish green the tree of hfe, 

Whose leaves shall heal the nations through the world, 

Kejoice ! thou church of God, expand, and fiU, 

And bless the earth a thousand thousand years ! — 

But Satan now must be transferred to that 
Dire spot where he must ever, ever dweU ; 
And that far out upon the face of Hell's 

Wide sea. And ^lichael now prepares to take 

That voyage, lone and dang'rous, on that sea ; 

Whose billows are the fear of all of Heav'n 

Or Hell ; upon whose face the stormy winds 

Forever rage ; and hurricanes, beyond 

All thouglit of man ; upturning that dread deep 

Of pestilential wave in madness to 

The clouds. And yet that deep must be essayed ° 

Its tempests, darkness, and its terrors, braved. 

And no subaltern hand must have the charge, — 

Lest he, their furious captive, should escape ; 

Or, chained, the work should not be safely done. 

The weal of worlds hangs on this last, great act. 

It must be done, as never to be done 

Again. And Michael goes himself, and takes 

The charge of all, and risk of all. But no 

Delay, save that for preparation due. 

And all are tasked to utmost skill and strength ; 



308 Satan Chained, 

And day and night, and niglit and day the work 
Is urged, to fit the means to dare that sea. 

In time the day arrives ; and they embark. 
They leave the shore ; and with them take the chief, 
The sullen chief reluctant, chafing to 
The soul ; but high and haughty as before. 

They urge their way ; and soon are far beyond 
The view of those they leave behind. The sea 
And Heav'ns now meet on every side ; and dark, 
And dreadful is the path they course, o'erhung 
With tempest-clouds ; and far from hne direct 
By warring winds ; yet making headway towards 
Their goal as days elapse. What shoals immense 
They scarcely shun ! What sunken rocks they graze, 
That broke the waves, and flung in wildest sui'ge 
And roar, the foam and breakers high in air. 

They're safe as yet ; and onward, onward is 
Their course ; but never with a placid sea. 

At length, at mid-day-houi', the skies grow black. 
" A storm, a storm," they cry. And all prepare 
To meet its rage. — The darkling heav'ns now roll 
With deepest thunder fi'om afar ; and fires 
Awaked play awfully behind the scene : 
And with a flickering glance befiinge the far 
Off clouds. Nor tariy long concealed. But now 
Forth dart in forked living streams ; and rend 
The pall, and glare upon the stormy deep. — 

The onset soon will come ; the mad'ning winds 
Are heard afar ; the billows swell. — They wait 
With awe-struck hearts, the coming shock. — It strikes. 
And heav'n and sea are mingled in one wild 
Tumultuous roar. The voy'gers hold for life. — 
Their bark is but a feather on the wave ; 



Satan Chained, 309 

And, driven like a bubble in the blast, 

But, broken not. — Ah ! what are storms on earth 

That seamen tell, to these ? — as far below 

In wildness and in might, as earth is less 

Than Hell's vast orb. — Each billow seemed itself 

A sea in size ; and loudest thunder of 

Our sphere were but electric sparks, to those 

Dire claps that rent the heavens of Hell. 

E'en angel ears were pained thereby ; and eyes 

Were bhnded by those sheets of hving fire. — 

Such tempests brood upon, and sweep that globe. 

And yet, their way is onward ; but their path 
Is awful still ; and now to right afar, 
And now to left. For days and days, they ply 
Their gloomy course. But not alone are shoals, 
And sunken rocks, and storms within their path ; 
But monsters of gigantic size ; that hide 
Within the caves, and dark retreats of that 
Dire sea. These ever and anon athwart 
Their track. They spy them far ; with head on high 
And winding trail of foam ; that tells the length 
Of body prone. — The heart is sick, as now 
They near the bark ; their jaws distended wide, 
Their eyeballs glaring fi'om their serpent heads. — 
They dwell hard by ; and overlook the bark 
With darting tongue, and hissing breath, and arch 
Of scaly neck ; — and threaten imminent. — 
Then slow subside ; and steer away to parts 
Unknown ; and lash the brine till lost to sight ; — 
And seek, mayhap, theu* darksome caves again. — 
The seamen then take breath, — and feel untold 

Relief. No slack of speed ! But faithful still ; 

On, on they press, the ceaseless howling winds 



310 Satan Chained. 

Above, and yawning gulfs below ! By day, 

A black and threat'ning heav'n ; and oh ! by niglit, 

A starless sky ! and billows high, to chill 

The blood ; then sinking to a bottomless 

Abyss , down which the faithful voy'gers plunge 

Amain, to make the bravest angel bosom shrink. 

But God had called them to this fearful lot ; 
And they obey. Yes, angels ever do 
His will. 'Tis only men and devils disobey. 

The days pass on ; and night succeeds to night ; 
And onward still. 

A storm again more dread 
Is near ; to which all other storms had been 
But zephyrs in their evening play. It's wing 
O'erspreads the deep. It's coming roar bestuns 
The ear. A blackened whirlwind falls upon the sea ; 
A dire tornado of that direful world. 
And hurls its billows to the clouds again 
With ten-fold fury. Where again's the bark 
Of Michael ? Gone ! Ah ! gone from sight ! — ^A blank 
Is left on ocean face. And has it sunk, 
To rise no more ? — O no ! Behold it rise, 
And ride the dizzy wave, and sweep the clouds 
Again — God gTiards. — The mission shall succeed ; 
The work be done. — But Satan prayed that all 
Might sink ; but not to God, he prayed to fate. 
For naught he dreaded, as the rock and chain ; 
Nor cared he aught, what other ills might come. 
If these, his destined fate, could but be shunned. 
His prayer shall not be heard ; his fate is sealed. — 

All day the fearful tempest hung, and had 
Not eased when night set in. Ah ! who can tell 
The terrors of that night ? The thunder pealed 



Satan Chained^ 311 

Its voice, and lightnings crossed the heav'ns from pole 
To pole , and streamed from heav'n to sea, from sea 
To heav'n ; bestunned the sight, — then shut the scene 
With pall impenetrably dark ;— then burst 
Again with awful splendor bright ; — then closed 
Again in darkness that could e'en be felt. — 

The storm-god raved ; and shapes were seen, that walked 
The midnight wave, and froze the blood. Thus xni ed 
The storm till dawn of day ; and yet the bark, 
Though strained in every part and shattered sore, 
Still lived, with all her crew ; and promise gave 
That she would reach her destined goal. — 

At length, 
One day, amidst their onward course, they see, 
Or think they see, in farthest verge of sky, 
Where heav'n and ocean meet, — a mound of foam ; — 
And then a blackened mass ; — then foam again. 
And as they near and nearer draw, they see 
The ocean seething like a caldron vast, 
And far beyond the rage of Scylla or 
Charibdis known to seamen in the days* 
Of old. The breakers, mighty in their surge, 
And awful in their roar, leap uj) and wet 
The clouds. This was their destined goal ; the rock, 
The fatal rock where Satan should be chained. — 
The sea then settles down to calm, the first 
Time sir.ce that sea was sea, that rock was rock. 
For God had stilled the wave as at the word 
Of Jesus : "Peace, be still." They now prepare 
To end their task. Their bark Hes safely on 
The lee. — They stand upon the rock, that mass 
Of adamant, that peak of mountain in 
The sea, upreaching from the depths below ; 



312 Satan Chained. 

That rock, that has, for ages past, withstood 
The ceaseless surge, the mighty wrath of storms. 
And shall forever stand and hold its head 
Unbroken by their power. 

The " chain " is bound 
Thereto with brazen bolts unbreakable 
And incorrupt. — And now they seize on him 
With fetters bound, and bring him struggling forth. 

He saw,— and deadly pale, he felt his knees 
Together smite, — ^his heart within him sink. 
He saw his fate, a fate he might have shunned, 
But now too late. They bind with lesser chains 
Thrice round his neck, and thrice his body round, 
And thrice round every Kmb. Then lock and bolt 
Them fast ; and these again to that " great chain " 
In 'pocalypse revealed, and thither brought 
By Michael at the word of God^ just made 
Forever fast to that dire rock. 

'Tis done ! 
The chafing, deadly fiend is safe. — They loose 
The fetters from his hands and feet ; and leave 
Him to his fate ; — and then depart. — He waits. 
In sullen mood, till their retiring bark 
Is lost to sight on distant wave ; — then bounds 
Amain like bison late on prairie caught. 
Or tiger recent from his jungle home. — 
He bounds again, again ; — and tries his chain ; — 
He chafes and foams, and tries again, again ; 
But aU in vain. 

He there shall sit enchained 
Till God's great Judgment Day ; then, brought befoiff 
His seat, shall hear his doom anew ; and be 
Remanded back ; shall ever view his crimes 



Satan Chained, 313 

And con tliem o'er ; but unrepentant still. 
There, there shall he abide and feel the scourge ; 
Yet curse, and curse his God and upward look^ 
Bereft of hope, through ages without end. 

Yes, chained forever on that lonely rock 
In Hell's dread ocean, shall he waste his years % 
And feel the beat upon his naked soul. 
Of her tempestuous and eternal waves. 



THE ESTD. 



